The Gold Ring
by Meeshkacat
Summary: With the touch of a gold ring, one male Inkling, Merlis, gets transported into another time period. A time period filled with humans walking the streets! In the mist of the confusion, he meets a girl that helps him navigate it all.
1. Chapter 1

Merlis's POV

The sound of the cheering crowd surrounded me as the timer ticked closer and closer to zero. Reaching into my bag, I threw one last ink bomb before a giant buzz rang through the air. It was dead silent as everyone waited for Judd to announce the results but everyone knew who won.

Cheers erupted as I caught a view of the victory flag aimed in my direction. I gave my splattershot a small twirl around my finger, ready to go back home. In the midst of my thinking, my teammates were already walking towards the exit as I hurried to catch up.

"Nice job, Merlis!" One of my teammates said and gave me a high five. I felt bad because I didn't remember his name but I didn't have to bother as he ran into the crowd of female fans waiting for him. All the girls squealed when he started to give everyone a high five.

"Good job, Merlis. I can always trust you to watch my back," said Asdil, patting my back.

"Well, I always listen to what you say and it works out," I replied.

Asdil was our team captain. She was the oldest on our team, being twenty-seven, but her strategies were unbeatable.

A group of Inklings huddled by the exit were calling my name, wanting to congratulate me. I knew none of them. Instead of going over, I decided to take the exit towards the Subway entrance to avoid them.

Walking out the door, I strolled into the center of the bustling Inkopolis. Music blared from the speakers placed on top of the main doors to the tournament arena. The streets filled with conversation, Inklings rushing to where ever they needed to go. The great Zapfish was perched on the Inkopolis Tower, keeping everything powered. I took a deep breath, glad to be out of the competitive mode. All the attention I got from the tournament just didn't sit with me. I didn't even want to be part of it and just got pulled into it by a friend. Many Inklings believed that our team was going to end up on top in the tournament. It's a classic underdog story really.

I walked into Cooler Heads, the headgear shop, wanting something fresh to wear. I was getting tired of these sunglasses. They were giving me a bad boy look that I don't like. Annie stood by the counter when I walked in, her hair looking just like a coral reef. It was pink with green on the tips, having a starfish on the side. A little clownfish popped out, swimming around.

"Please, have a look around, Merlis…" she spoke softly, having a small blush on her cheeks.

"Give us your money!" the clownfish demanded, swimming back into her hair.

"Shh, Moe."

The shelves were littered with all kinds of hats. They ranged anywhere from a scuba mask to a headband. A blue cap with a small squid on the front caught my eyes. I tried it on, fitting perfectly on my orange hair. I gave a small smile as I said I'd buy it.

Strolling out, I noticed Judd lazily rolling around in a beam of light that shone through the clouds. He was on top of a blue box, his chubby cat body looking as fluffy as ever. His fur made him look like he was wearing overalls with a small black tie and I found that funny.

"Hey, Judd. How's it going?"

He gave a big yawn, rolling over to face me. "Purrfect timing Merlis. Someone came over earlier. Told me to give this to you."

He handed me a small black box. It fit perfectly in the palm of my hand, like it was made to be that size. It opened upward, revealing a cushin-y inside. There was a little gold circle placed upright in the center.

"What's this?" I asked Judd, curious.

As soon as my fingers touched it, a bright, white light shone everywhere and blinded me as I screamed out. Next thing I knew, my mind went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Anna's POV

"See you later mom!"

I closed the screen door behind me, walking into the warm summer air. Bees were already buzzing by as I made my way down the back porch stairs. Summer vacation was finally here and I was ready to go have fun exploring. Shoes tied and bug spray on, I entered the woods behind our house. I didn't want another incident like last year where I had to waste a perfect day because a bug bite got a little too big.

The trees swayed with the summer breeze with the fresh scent of grass in the air. A squirrel scurried past me and started climbing up a tree. It stopped, looked at me, and continued on its merry way. I watched it climb higher and higher until it disappeared into the branches. The farther I went into the woods, the more I felt like I was going on a faraway adventure. I've been into these forest a thousand times but it never gets old for me. Something always changes about it because it's living. A new tree would sprout or flowers bloom.

Hopping over a fallen tree, I noticed a little spec of orange out of the corner of my eye. I wandered over towards it to see what it was. The closer I got, the more it seemed to be a human because it was. A boy was lying in a patch of grass, leaning against an old oak tree. A natural spotlight shown down on him. He had a baseball cap on with a squid logo, a white t-shirt, and a nice looking pair of sneakers. The weird thing about him, besides his bright orange hair under his cap, was that his ears were pointed outward like triangles. I'd never seen anything like that. Not in cosplay or Halloween. The closest thing I could think of that looked like his was when a cat pushes their ears back. It kind of looked like that. I was actually really tempted to touch them. So I did just that. When I put my hand on them, they felt almost like human skin but had a slicker feel to it. I tried tugging on it slightly to see if they were fake but they didn't seem to budge.

Looking around, I noticed a small box lying next to his hand. I might be snooping a little bit, but I picked up the box and opened it. It opened just like a ring box, a gold ring right in the center.

Was he going to propose to someone? Isn't he a little young for that though?

He only looked about seventeen, a year older than I was. He let out a small groan as I quickly dropped the box and stepped back.

"Hey, you getting up yet?" I asked, waiting patiently as his eyes started to blink open. He lifted his hand against the sunbeam shining right on his face, squinting his eyes. That's another thing. He looked like he had a black mask on, surrounding his eyes like Robin wore his mask.

"Ugh," he moaned, leaning off the tree.

My eyes went wide at the sight of his teeth. His two front teeth formed a triangle on top and two sharp canines on bottom. They looked cool.

"You up?"

His head zipped straight at me, eyes widening once he got over the dizziness from the sudden movement.

"Where am I?" he spoke, his voice sounded so rhythmic. He had some kind of ascent but I couldn't tell from where.

He looked around, staring at the trees as they swayed in the wind. He flinched his hand away when he noticed his hand on the grass like it shocked him for touching it. I just stood there, watching.

"You're in the woods, if you couldn't tell. Or are you talking about city? Cause then we're just outside Sedville limits," I said.

He placed his hand back down, running it along the grass. He didn't seem to be listening to me. He was too consumed with the fascination of grass.

"What is this?" He asked.

I raised an eyebrow at his question. "Grass?"

"Grass doesn't feel like this though…" I scrunched up my eyebrows. He then pointed at a squirrel munching on a nut. "And that?"

"A squirrel. Ok, are on drugs or something?" I asked, now slightly cautious that this guy could be a druggie or something.

"What happened to Inktopolis? And the box?" he asked.

"Inktopolis? That's where you're from?"

He nodded his head. He started to get up, spotting the box that happened to roll a foot or so away when I dropped it. That's when I saw his hair. It was like two tentacles that were tied together by a scrunchy. They had a little circle on the white underside- a suction cup.

"Are you an octopus?!" I exclaimed. I was started to become really confused.

He's already picked up the box when he turned around and pointed a finger at me.

"I am NO octopus! I'm a squid. A proud Inkling and Octoling are our enemies," he said. He seemed to be offended at first, then confused.

"And what are you? You don't look like an Octoling OR Inkling," he said with wonder, his anger disappearing as quickly as it came.

"I'm a human. My name's Anna by the way. Nice to meet you." I stuck my hand out to shake.

He seemed to hesitate at first until he shook my hand. "My name's Merlis."


	3. Chapter 3

Anna's POV

His hand didn't feel slimy but like his ears, slick. It was almost like someone applied many layers of lotion on it.

"Never thought I'd see a real human. We were told that a long time ago, humans existed and flourished," he spoke while staring into my eyes. His were golden like sunflowers. They shined brightly when they got caught in the light.

"Well, I'm alive and kicking," I said cheerfully, pulling my hair up in a ponytail. The sun was starting to come all the way up, basically already right above our heads. Today was defiantly going to be an interesting day.

"You humans sure have weird hair…"

I looked at him, faking being offended. "Well, your hair is made of two tentacles."

Merlis smiled, walking around a tree to only let out a gasp.

"What?" I asked. Did he step on a something?

"My ink gun!"

I walked over to him, watching as he pulled out a paint gun from a bush. It looked brand new.

"Why do you have a paint gun?"

"It's not paint. It's ink. And why? For the tournament. I forgot I still had it when I touched the circle." He aimed the ink gun at a tree, firing a few rounds. The tree exploded with orange ink, slowly running down the trunk.

"You mean the gold ring?"

He shot a few more, making a trail from the tree to where we stood. "So that's what it was. I'd never seen a ring that small before."

"Don't you Inklings have rings that you put on your finger?" I asked.

"No."

"Then why do you have a ring box?"

He stayed silent for a little bit, then answered me. "Judd gave me it. He said that someone told him to give it to me. And when I touched it...well, next thing I knew, I ended up here."

He placed his hand on a tree trunk, running his fingers up and down it. It's like he never touched rough tree bark before.

"Who's Judd?"

"You sure ask a lot of questions Anna. I feel like I should be the one asking the questions," he said, looking at me while he spoke. He seemed to be good at that.

I gave a smile as I said, "Well, can you blame a girl for being curious? It's not like I see a human looking squid every day."

"Humans don't exist where I'm from and I'm not bombarding you with questions," he retorted.

"But you could."

He gave a playful smirk. "Well, have you ever seen this before?"

Suddenly, he literally morphed into the ink under him, leaving a ripple where he had just stood. My mouth hung open slightly as I saw him pop back up next to the tree he splattered with ink.

"Wh-wha...huh!?"

He disappeared again but this time, I saw a little stream coming towards me in the ink. It created a small bubbly sound as it went. Merlis then appeared right in front of me, causing me to jump back slightly.

"Heh, never seen anything like that before. Definitely," I said, running my hand through some loose strands of hair. "How'd you do that?"

He seemed to be proud of himself, taking a few steps away from the ink. "I'll show you."

I stood there, seeing a cute orange squid lying in the grass. It had huge yellow eyes with two giant tentacles. The ends of them were actually slightly bulged and spotted. He looked like an arrow. I wanted to poke it.

When I reached out, he started to jump away from me, back towards the ink. He looked so adorable I couldn't explain it in any other words. He jumped in, disappearing except for the stream. He somehow just became as flat as the ground I stood on. I got curious as I walked on the ink. Lifting my shoe, it was completely orange. I gave a wide smile as I sat straight in the ink. Thankfully, I wore some on my old, ruined clothes so I didn't care much if they got dirty.

Merlis turned around, coming straight at me. I stayed where I sat, waiting as he swam right at me. It became apparent to me that he wasn't stopping as he picked up a little speed. But I wasn't going to move either. He bumped right into my thigh, causing both of us to recoil. He got pushed back a good foot while my body just got swayed to the left. He then bumped back into my leg, then again, and again.

"Hey, I'm not moving from here," I said as I wiped my finger in the ink, drawing a picture in the grass with it.

He stopped bumping into me in response. I kept drawing until I became too curious for my own good and looked up. He stood about a yard away from me, aiming his ink gun at my white shirt.

"You wouldn't dare…" I said threateningly, squinting my eyes at him.

Next thing I knew, I got splattered by some orange ink, forcing me to retreat behind a tree. I heard him shoot a few more round at the tree.

"You're going to get it now!" I yelled out. Competition mode on, I ran behind another tree just in time to dodge a blast of ink. Peeking behind me, I saw the tip of Merlis's gun poking out from behind a tree. I took the chance as I charged right at him, snatching the ink gun right out of his hands. I pointed it right at him, victory certain.

"Haha! Time for payback," I said, pulling the trigger. But nothing came out.

It was out of ink.

"Ha! Good luck next time," Merlis laughed, walking back to grab the ink gun out of my hands. He jumped into the big ink puddle, jumping out only a few seconds later. He shot a small splat at my shorts, showing that it was full of ink again.

"Hey overkill much?" I giggled. "But it's cool how it just replenishes like that. I guess you'll never run out then."

"Something like that," he said.

My attire was completely splattered in ink while Merlis stood there, clean from any speck. I flicked some ink at him, leaving a small splat on his sleeve.

"Payback," I said.

He just rolled his eyes, smiling while doing it. "Well, I guess I'm stuck here cause I don't know any way to get back to Inktopolis…" He sounded sad, but not devastated like any person who just lost their home would be. I wonder why.

I started to stroll around the area, Merlis following me wherever I went. "Weeell...sense you don't have a home now or any idea how human society woooorks...you can stay with me…" I said, throwing the idea out there. I was kind of hoping I could spend more time with him. He seemed cool and defiantly interesting. I would say exotic but that makes him seem like an animal. Even if he kind of was in a way.

"Were you expecting me to just go out into the human world and figure everything out myself? Cause I'm not too keen on that idea," he said behind me.

I mentally fist pumped as I spoke, "Cool! Now stop walking behind me and walk beside me. We're friends now."

He trotted up next to me, his hair bobbing up and down. "Friends," he said as he smiled.


	4. Chapter 4

Merlis's POV

"If anyone asks, tell them you're cosplaying as a squid," Anna told me. She said she wanted to show me a park. We have parks in Inkopolis, but I'm wondering how different they are here.

"Why?"

"Do you want ten little kids running towards you, asking a billion question and pulling on your hair?" Anna said, giving me a sideways glance.

"...No."

"Didn't think so."

As we started to walk closer, I started to hear the laughter of little children. Then I saw the park. Miniature versions of Anna ran around, squeaking and squealing as they chased each other. Some were on slides and others swung on a swing set.

"They look adorable," I said.

Anna looked at me strangely. "Not the first thing I thought you'd say…"

I spotted a small child that looked strangely exactly like Anna playing in a sandbox. She was making a giant lump in the sand, patting it down on all side like she was trying to build something. She placed a stick in top, the sand shifting down a little bit from the extra weight. Anna then patted her head...wait what?

I looked beside me to see Anna wasn't standing there anymore. I rushed over to her, watching as she picked the little girl up.

"Merlis, meet Maria. She's my little sister!" Anna said happily, placing her back down.

I scrunched down, taking a close look at Maria. She had chubby cheeks and sand all in her hair. She reached her hands out, grabbing onto my ear. She couldn't get a good grip as her fingers slipped right off. Her hands felt soft, just like how Anna's was. Did all humans have soft skin like theirs? I patted her head, imagining how Anna must have looked like this when she was younger.

"My name is Merlis," I introduced myself.

Maria smiled. "Ma names Maria. You have weird ears. I'm ganna to call you weird ear man." She then ran off, chanting 'weird ear man' over and over again.

Anna laughed as she watched her run along. "She's adorable, isn't she? She's at a birthday party today. In case you were wondering."

I stood back up, spotting a kid running right at Anna with his hand outstretched. I looked at Anna, not sure if we should move out of the way. The little boy ran right up to Anna, touching her leg as he yelled out, "Tag!"

Anna, who was staring off in the distance, smiled and started to chase after the little boy. She then caught another little boy, saying tag when she touched him. I just stood there, not sure what I was supposed to do until the boy came running at me.

"Tag!" yelled the boy, running as fast as he could away from me.

I stared at Anna, not sure what to do. I saw her wave her hands towards the little group of kids that had now formed. She mouthed the word 'Go'. The boy, only having gotten a few feet away from me, stuck his tongue out at me. I gave a small smile at his taunt and started to chase the little boy like I seen Anna do. He ran in circles around a tree until the boy hid behind Anna's leg. I slowed my pace when I approached her, slowly placing my hand on her shoulder. "Tag?"

She gave a big smile and said, "Now you're getting it."

I can't help but smile. The little boy behind her quickly let go of her, running back to the little group of children yelling, "Anna's it!"

And that's how we ended up playing tag for about an hour. I was winded and out of breath by the time we stopped. Anna was just the same. We plopped down on a wooden bench, taking a well-deserved break. I haven't ran like that since...well ever.

"Whew! Well there's my work out for the day," Anna said, using her hand to fan her face. I took my cap off, handing it to Anna as she thanked me. I could feel a slight breeze at her attempt to use my hat as a fan. Cool air glided across my face. I tilted my head back, closed my eyes, and listened.

First thing I heard was Anna's breath. She took deep breaths, calming herself. Then I heard people talking, children laughing, leaves rustling, the-

"Wanna go on the swings?"

I opened my eyes back up, looking at Anna. Her face was filled with excitement. She quickly recuperated from the run, seemingly ready for another round. "Sure."

She tossed me my hat back as she jumped off the bench. Caught off guard, it took me a little bit to catch up with her. We raced over to the one remaining swing that swung back and forth with the breeze. I jumped into it, getting there seconds before Anna, even though she had a head start.

"Hey! I got here first," Anna complained as she attempted to push me off the swing. By the time she noticed that I wasn't budging, she stopped trying.

She stood by the side, watching as I attempted to swing. My legs flailed everywhere but I couldn't get as high as all the other kids.

"How old are you if you don't even know how to use a swing?" Anna teased me, having a small smirk on her face.

"I'm seventeen!" I said, stopping my petty attempt of swinging. "...and I just haven't been on a swing for a long time." I could feel myself blushing slightly, embarrassed. I don't even remember the last time I was on a swing.

Anna laughed at me, making me want to hide in a puddle of ink. I felt a pair of hands push my back as I started to swing back and forth. "Now hold on to the chains and start swinging your legs back and forth along with the swing. When you swing forward, your legs go forward," Anna instructed me. I did just as she said to find myself swinging just like everyone else was. Anna walked back in front, watching as I started getting higher and higher. The higher I got, the more I felt myself lift off the swing. My legs could touch the branches the hung over the swing set, some leaves falling down when I kicked it.

"Stop swinging Merlis!" Anna yelled in a panicked voice. By the time I heard her, I was already on the upswing. I felt my body lift off the seat a good five inches. My swing was parallel to the ground as I felt myself fall backwards faster than the swing was coming back. I fastened my grip on the chain and tried lifting my legs. Swinging back down, I crouched on the seat, adrenaline pumping through me. The wind blew on my neck as my hat almost flew off.

I saw Anna rush up to me, trying to grab hold of the swing. She managed to slow the swing down enough so I could hop off without face planting.

Just as I landed with a thump, Anna rushed by, grabbing my hand.

"A-Anna! What are you doing?!" I asked her as she pulled me along. I saw her hair swish back and forth, sometimes getting loose strand that tickled my nose.

"Look behind you!"


	5. Chapter 5

Merlis's POV

I turned my head to see a horde of children chasing us, faces in amazement. My feet seemed to move faster as I started to pull Anna along, bobbing and weaving between people and objects. I almost ran into a person but I managed to sidestep them, pulling Anna closer so she wouldn't crash into them. I could feel myself smile as we kept running until the kids soon lost track of us. I wanted to keep running like this, eyes closed and feeling the wind in my hair, but I could hear Anna starting to lose breath. We eventually slowed down, no little kids on our trail.

"Ok, we're good," I said to Anna. I looked around me, not recognizing anything. I didn't mean to run that far. "Where are we?" I asked. We were in some kind of field. If I squinted, you could see some shapes in the distance, probably the park.

Anna looked around too before saying, "You ran right out of the park area. Looks like we're next to the skate park now."

I peered over to where Anna pointed. There were a group of boys with skateboards grinding it out on the rails and ramps. It was only a few yards away from us.

"That was some swinging action you got there. I was sure you were going to fall off," Anna said, catching her breath. "Geez, you can run."

I wandered over to the skate park, watching one guy flip in midair on his skateboard as he landed back on the ramp. Then another guy did this move I didn't know of. I was standing on the edge of the park before I knew it. I remembered seeing a skatepark in Inkopolis. I used to hang out there before I joined Asdil and her group. Though it was more of being dragged over instead of hanging out. Anna caught up to me a few seconds later.

"Hey, guess who it is."

I noticed a guy stroll up to Anna, skateboard under his arm. He had wild looking hair, a deep black strike popping off the blonde. He had this giant check mark on his shirt and a pair of jean shorts. I was about to ask who he was until Anna answered for me.

"Go away Jack. I'm not here for you," Anna said with hatred. I was surprised at her sudden distaste of the guy. But Jack didn't listen as he approached anyways.

"Awww, come on Sweetcakes. I know you didn't mean that," Jack said and placed an arm on her shoulder. Anna instantly nudged him off. She stared daggers at him and scooted towards me. I was taken back that a fun girl like Anna could hate someone. She didn't seem like the type.

"I mean every word! Now stop bothering me."

Jake faked being hurt by placing his hand on his chest. "You weren't complaining when you were in my room," he said smugly.

"Oh my god Jack. That's not what happened. Now get over it! I don't even know why I dated you. You're disgusting," Anna snarled at him.

"You won't think like that after you spend some more time with me, Sweets. I can make you cry out in lik-"

"Hey, stop it," I interjected. I started to really get fed up with his attitude towards Anna. She made it obvious that she didn't like this guy. Placing my hand on his chest, I tried to give her some space from him.

Jack slowly turned his head towards me, a frown deeply etched on his face.

"And who are you? You cosplaying little boy." He looked me down, the corner of his lip twitching up. "You really downgraded, Anna." He pulled my ear, flicking his hand once he felt it. I furrowed my eyebrows, now clearly seeing this guy's attitude. He was one of those guys.

"Hey," I sternly said, surprising myself, "if Anna doesn't want to see you, then go away."

Jack widened his eyes, tilting his head at me. "Look at you all big and scary now." He gave another smirk. Those were really started to get annoying.

"Leave him out of this," Anna told Jack, stepping back in front of me.

"I'm sorry. Did I hurt my Sweetcakes feelings?"

Anna roughly tugged my arm, saying, "Let's just go."

I stared Jack down when we walked away as some friends of his strolled next to him. He started to say something that I couldn't catch and everyone around him laughed.


	6. Chapter 6

Merlis's POV

"I don't like him at all. He's a complete jerk," I said, now walking besides Anna. Thankfully, Jack and his friends left us alone and didn't bother to follow us. I don't know what I would do if they did. We eventually walked into town as I saw cars drive by us. They reminded me of cars in Inkopolis. While my mind drifted to different aspects of the human town, Anna didn't speak at all during the walk. She just kept her head down.

Before I was going to say something, she finally spoke, "I'm sorry."

I looked at her. "For what?"

"For bringing you into my mess. I mean we just met today. You shouldn't have to deal with him," Anna said while lifting her head.

"Don't worry about it," I said, scratching my hair.

"But that guy just boils my blood! He thinks just because I went out with him once that he owns me now!" Anna yelled, clutching her fists. "He thinks he's this big shot and he can have his way with any girl. I must have been out of my mind to have wanted to go out with him. I thought that he…ARGGGH!" Anna screamed. I could tell she wanted to punch something.

I stuck my hand out. "Here, punch it."

Anna's hand instantly swung at it, landing a punch that caused me to take a step back. A few people looked our way but carried on.

"Thanks. I needed that," she said and continued walking forward. I stood there stupefied for a bit, eventually shaking the buzzing feeling off my hand and catching up with her.

"Ok, let's continue with your tour," Anna said, trying to regain her cheerful attitude.

"Since when were we on a tour?" I asked, catching a guy staring at me.

"Since now cause it seems like we're just walking everywhere today."

Anna walked into an old building. It was made of red brick with an old wooden door. It stuck out with all the neighboring buildings looking sleeker and business like. When I walked in, a little bell sounded and saw a small bell hanging from a hook above me.

"Welcome back, Anna! How are you?" said an unfamiliar voice. I looked around the small room to see a table with two chairs next to the window. There was a bookshelf on the wall with only a couple books placed in it. There were figures placed on the shelves that seemed interesting. One of them

I wanted to ask about but decided against it.

"For the most part, good. I met a new friend today. His name's Merlis."

Upon hearing my name, I drew my attention back over to Anna. There was an old lady standing behind a glass counter filled with different looking foods.

"Well, look at you," said the old lady. She wore a dirty apron with her white hair up in a bun.

Anna leaned on the counter, her ponytail falling over her shoulder. She casually pointed in my direction. "He's actually a squid."

My eyes widened.

Anna noticed my expression, giving me a 'Oh ya' expression. "Don't worry. Lada here won't tell anyone. She's the sweetest lady in town."

Lada gave a warm smile when she heard that.

"Here, let me get you a cookie," she said as she slowly walked to the glass display case. I saw her pull out a shelf filled with these round disk.

She grabbed two using a napkin and handed them to us. I never ate a 'cookie' before. I mean, I don't make an effort to eat every kind of food out there but when I go to the bakery, the rare times that I do, I haven't seen one. I was skeptical but when I saw Anna take a bite and give a big smile, I went ahead and took a bite. The cookie was soft and warm on my tongue as I quickly devoured it all. I heard Anna chuckle as I looked up and saw her looking at me.

"Good right?"

I nodded my head as I licked the crumbs from my mouth. I was craving for another one.

"Anna dear, why is your shirt all orange? You're shorts also have orange stains on them. Here, let me get you another shirt," Lada said as she wandered into the back room.

"No it-" Anna tried to refuse but Lada already disappeared into the room. She gave a sigh as Lada came back with another white shirt and a pair of shorts.

"Thanks Lada," Anna said reluctantly. She walked into the bathroom to change, leaving me alone with Lada.

I was wondering why Lada had an extra pair of clothes here but seeing Anna's close relationship with her, I guess she comes here a lot.

Lada seemed content just standing there. I decided to take a seat next to the window, not sure what to do. Taking my hat off, I started to fiddle with my hair.

"So, how are you young man?" she asked.

I was kind of cautious just telling her but Anna trusted her. "Well, at first. I was having a normal day. We won the tournament round and that put me in a pretty good mood. Then I found this box," I said while pulling it out to show her. I handed it to her to look over while I continued my story. "Then I ended up in the woods after I touched it. That's when I met Anna and explored this human world. It's actually surprising just like Inktopolis. But your cookie is probably the best thing that happened today. They taste amazing by the way."

I waited for her to respond, maybe freak out but Anna came out of the bathroom then.

"Grandma! Are you ok?" Anna said, rushing behind the counter.

I turned around to see Lada quietly crying as she held open the box. I panicked, crying not being the reaction I expected.

"Grandma, are you hurt?" Anna asked, placing her hand on Lada's shoulder.

She is Anna's grandmother?

"I'm fine my dear. It's just that this is the ring my husband proposed to me with."


	7. Chapter 7

Anna's POV

I gave a sigh, happy that she wasn't hurt. "But why does Merlis have your ring?" I asked.

Grandma wiped her eyes, placing the ring box down on the counter. "My husband proposed to me on the dock as the sun was setting and clouds just a wisp. I could never forget that day because he accidentally dropped it into the ocean," grandma said while smiling.

"Are you sure it's yours grandma?" I asked. "I mean it looks just like any gold ring."

Grandma took the ring out of the box carefully, like it would disappear if she touched it. She showed me the inside of the ring, pointing out something I didn't see when I looked at it earlier. Merlis looked at it too. On the inside of the ring was the engraved name ' _Lada'_.

Merlis seemed as confused as a mouse in an endless maze. "But then how did it appear in Inktopolis? Why did I get it?" Merlin stared at the ring. "Can I see it?" he asked.

Grandma slowly extended her arm, dropping the ring into his palm. Time seemed to slow for only seconds as the ring started to fall. Just as the ring touched Merlis's palm, a bright light enveloped him. I had to cover my eyes until the light dimmed. When I lowered my arm, Merlis was gone.

"Merlis?"

"Oh dear, he disappeared! The ring box is missing, too," grandma said.

I stood there, dumbfounded at what just happened. _What happened to Merlis?_

Merlis's POV

"Ugh," I moaned. My head felt like it was spinning. I tried opening my eyes but it was too bright.

"Anna? You there?" I tried asking, hoping to hear her voice.

"It's Merlis!" I heard an unfamiliar voice yell out. When my eyes finally got use to the light, I saw myself smack dab in the middle of Inktopolis. The ring box laid open with the ring inside next to me as I quickly swiped it up before others started stepping on it. Inklings swarmed me, helping me stand up.

"It's really Merlis!"

"He's back!"

"Where'd you go Merlis?"

"Merlis!"

I got overwhelmed by all the Inklings, making me feel uncomfortable. _How did I get back?_ I looked down at the ring box in my hand.

"Merlis!" I heard Asdil yell out my name. I shoved the box into my pocket when she squeezed out from the crowd. "Everyone! Give him some space!" she yelled, everyone complying. She grabbed my shoulders and stared at me. "You ok? You suddenly disappeared after the tournament. They said there was a bright light and you suddenly were gone." She let go of me, satisfied that I was fine. "We were looking everywhere for you."

I peered around myself and saw more Inklings crowding around. "Can we get out of the crowd first?" I asked Asdil.

She nodded her head, yelling at the Inklings to get out of the way. She carved a path for me into the closest building: Cooler Heads. Annie looked up at our sudden entrance.

"You have an empty room we can borrow?" Asdil asked as Annie pointed down a hallway, her mouth hanging open slightly.

We walked into an empty room to find a table and four chairs. It must have been the employee room.

"Ok, now tell me what happened," Asdil said as we sat down.

Asdil was my team captain. If anyone, I could trust her. I took the box out of my pocket, placing it on the table. "Ok, so it started with this ring box."

The clock on the wall ticked by, minute by minute, as I explained everything that had happened to me. I left out a few details about things I did with Anna. Those events seemed more personal.

"So when you touch the ring, you get transported to the human world?" Asdil asked. She kept staring at me then back at the box as I was explaining the story.

"Ya."

"Ok," she said, swindling the box from the desk. "I'm taking this from you and you're going to go to the hospital to get checked out. Our next tournament is tomorrow morning and I need you in full mental health to win."

I jumped out of my chair, worried that I wasn't going to see Anna again. "I don't need to go to the hospital! Give me that back Asdil!"

Asdil stood up, pushed in her chair, and walked to the door. "If you're not going to go to the hospital, then get a good rest and clear your head because you're talking nonsense. I'm not losing this tournament because you suddenly think you've met a human."

She closed the door behind her, leaving me alone in the room. I sat back down into my chair slowly. Asdil seemed more focused on winning then I remembered her. And then what will Anna think? I just up and disappeared and can't go back now. _But shouldn't I be happy that I'm back home?_

 _Then why don't I feel like it?_

The door creaked open to have Annie poke her head out. "You ok? Asdil seemed kinda mad when she walked out," she said timidly.

"Ya, I'm fine for the most part," I said, walking over to the door.

"I'd go through the back door if I was you," Annie said, pointing over at the window.

I peeked my head around the corner to see a group of people waiting outside.

"Ok, thanks for the advice Annie."

Annie blushed. "You're welcome and welcome back," she said softly.

I stepped through the back alleyway door, glad that no one was there. Before I left, Annie gave me a new hat to help and hide my face which I was glad for. Hopefully it would work.

I took a step into town square and wasn't bombarded with Inklings so I counted that as a success. But I didn't want to push my luck and rushed to my apartment. I closed the door behind myself and was greeted by a familiar scene. It was a small room with a bed, closet, bathroom, and other small things. My other weapons lay in a corner of the room.

 _Wait._

I patted my back, only to find my ink gun gone. My eyes widen slightly as my mind raced to remember where I could have left it.

"I remember having it when I met Jack. Then we went inside the building, met Lada…"

Then it clicked. I set it down when I sat by the window. Anna probably had it now. I know she'll keep it safe.

I plopped down on my bed, throwing my new hat on the floor. Tiredness seemed to consume me as I felt the cool sheets under me. So many things happened, I was kind of surprised it all happened in a single day. Figuring out how to get the ring back would have to wait till tomorrow. Right now, I needed to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Anna's POV

Merlis...disappeared. Not into an ink puddle but from thin air. He took the ring and box with him. The only thing I found that he left of himself behind was his ink gun and hat.

I looked over at grandma, hoping that I wasn't hallucinating. She was surprised. I could tell by the look in her eyes even if her face was calmer than mine.

A small bell rang as a person walked into the store.

"Is everyone ok in here? There was a bright light and I was wondering if there was some kind of accident."

I gave the man a smile and said, "We're all ok. It's just the light suddenly went crazy. I think maybe one of the light bulbs might have exploded or something."

The man nodded his head and walked back out. I grabbed Merlis's ink gun, thankful it had a strap on it. It didn't weigh anything when I put it over my shoulder.

"Well... do you think he's coming back?" grandma said.

"I don't know grandma. I don't know. But I hope so."

Merlis's POV

I slowly opened my eyes to be greeted with a bright morning light from the window. Today was the day of the tournament and the day I need to get the ring back. But I had no idea how to get it back. She would probably have it with her the whole time. Unless she would somehow accidentally drop it or someone stole it from her, there isn't any other way. I was going to have to steal it.

I got up out of bed and put on a new pair of clothes. I didn't know which weapon to choose because I forgot to look at the announcement but I decided to take the splatterscope.

My ring tone brought me back from my thinking and I saw my phone light up on my desk. I walked over there and saw my phone was filled with random text messages. All of them are from Inklings I didn't even know. They were all asking about where I was. I deleted all the text messages, knowing that all of them are going to find out that I'm back. I stared down at my phone, empty from anyone's number other than my teammates'. I stuffed the phone into my pocket.

...

I walked into the tournament waiting area, seeing my team standing in the corner. I wandered over there, catching Inklings' curious eyes.

"Well look who's back," said Papil, my friend and teammate who got me into the tournament in the first place. I smiled at him, looking over at Asdil.

"You're right. We need to win the tournament," I lied, hoping she wouldn't see through it. Asdil smiled and seemed satisfied.

"Good because today we're going to win!" she yelled, getting the team pumped up. I noticed Asdil having a box shape poking out in her jacket, telling me that the ring box was in there. I was going to have to take it sometime during our rounds when she isn't paying attention. A loud voice speaking over the intercom caused everyone to look up into the judge's box.

"Welcome all Inklings! You've all come to witness the finally rounds of the tournament and an amazingly fresh one it's been!"

Inklings in the stands cheered. Many were holding signs, showing which team they were routing for.

"All rounds are going to take place in Moray Towers! Best of luck to all teams!" yelled another announcer. Judd waved at the crowds as cheers erupted.

I gave a mental sigh of relief. Moray Towers was a good place for snipers if I got into the right position.

The first team got announced as everyone else went over to the viewing platform. I was glad we didn't go first because then I got to scope out the arena more.

Both teams got into their ready position when I noticed that each side had a sniper. That was going to be fun to watch. The timer started counting down as both teams got released.

I looked over at my two teammates, watching as they started chatting to with each other. Asdil on the other hand was scrolling her eyes over the stage. Her eyes squinted as she watched one of the players get squished from a splatroller. She was calculating a strategy, gathering data on how the round was going.

I looked back to the round, catching a glimpse of a direct shot from a sniper splattering an Inkling. My eyes widened slightly, amazed at how well that shot was timed. He is definitely the one to look out for. My palms start to warm up as I slightly jump up and down.

If I wanted to get the ring back, I'm going to need to do it quickly so she'd hopefully not notice. Scooting a little bit closer to Asdil, I flexed my fingers.

"AND THAT'S THE ROUND!" the announcer cheered, rallying up the crowd. Shouts filled the air with congratulations and good jobs, distracting me from seeing Asdil walking over to the two others.

"THE SCORE IS IN! It's a whopping 75% to 11%! Tokin's team wins!"

The sniper I saw earlier walked out of the arena door. I noticed a smug smile plastered on his face as he confidently walked by the other opponents. His other team members walk behind, wish other teams good luck.

"Tokin huh?" I silently said. Just from what I saw, he was good but cocky.

"Come on Merlis. We're next," said Papil, waiting for me. The other two already were on the way. I sighed, gathering courage for what I was going to do. We walked up a staircase to the top of the tower. Once we were on top, the wind helped cool the nerves that I didn't know were there. I could hear the roar of the crowd as we got announced.

"Ok Merlis," Asdil spoke towards me. "You're going try and find a high spot, probably at that last platform. Just splat as many of them as you can. We're going to push them back."

"THREE!"

I nodded my head, knowing already that I was going there.

"TWO!"

I tightened my grip on my splatterscope.

"ONE!"

 _This is for you Anna._

"GO!"


	9. Chapter 9

Merlis's POV

I instantly tried reaching for Asdil's pocket but in that split second before I reached her, she turned into a squid. She swam away in the blue ink that one of my other teammates created. I didn't give up though as I chased after her. I was prepared for it to take some effort on my part. Motivated again, I jumped off the edge just as a missile shot straight at me, causing me to restart back on top.

"Darn it! Ok, they're not going to make it that easy for me."

I got released again as I jumped off the edge, not bothering swimming all the way down the ramp and hid behind a wall. Eyeing the area, I tried to find where everyone was. I spotted someone from the other team pulling out another missile as I quickly snipped him. That's when I saw Asdil pop out from an ink puddle, charging up the opposite tower. I watched her climb, thinking of how I was going to get to her.

We were taking the lead as I saw an Inkling sneaking up on Asdil. There wasn't anything I could do, my splatterscope not having the range, as I watched her get splatted from behind. I couldn't help but be slightly shocked that she would let an opponent sneak up on her.

Her respawn time was quick. I heard her appear behind me, fumes seemingly rising from her head. This was my chance.

"The nerve of that team!"

I shot my hand out, grabbing hold of the ring box and yanking it out of her pocket. I instantly sprinted for it as Asdil's reflexes caused her to latch onto my free arm. Our eyes met, her confused look boring into me. She noticed the box in my hand, her eyes squinting down in anger. My body got tugged to the floor. The box slipped from my grip as Asdil yelled, "Oh no you're not!"

She raced towards the tumbling box but I stretched my arm, just like she did, and barely grabbed her foot. I pulled with all my might as I dragged her behind me and propelled myself towards the box. Asdil grunted as she caught up to me, being much faster than I was. I was just inches away when she tackled me, causing my hand to push the box towards the center of the arena.

Suddenly, a bright purple splat of paint landed next to us. There was an enemy attacking us from the front as we both separated to dodge the next attack. An inkboy was standing by the ramp. The box laid dangerously close to his feet, unbeknownst to the Inkling.

I had two choices. I could either attack him right now or try and go around him stealthy. Rounds of ink were shot towards Asdil's hiding area before I could decide myself. I swam around a back path, taking the opportunity of his distraction for my benefit. Locking my eyes on the box, I jumped out right when I heard a splat as the enemy exploded into a blue ink puddle. I did a tight somersault and felt the pointy edges of the box in my hand. In my peripheral vision, I saw Asdil charging at me as I opened the box to reveal the golden ring. A rush of relief flowed through me at the chance to see Anna again when the box got slapped from my hand.

Asdil's figure rushed past me, rushing over to the box as the ring got knocked into the air. It flew high, giving off a small shine as it hit the beam of sunlight.

"Ha! I've got the box now!" Asdil cheered at her assumed victory. She held the box in her hand like a trophy. I couldn't help but smirk as the ring slowly started to fall right back down.

"I don't think so Asdil," I confidently spoke. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Papil standing there. He stared at me but I couldn't make out what emotion he had. A small feeling of regret poked me but I pushed it aside. He might have been my friend but our relationship as one wasn't real.

Jumping in the air, I grabbed the ring as a bright light enveloped me.

…

First, I noticed I was lying on the ground. Secondly, it was dark. I wasn't in complete darkness because I started to softly glow blue. My fingers grazed a small object, the ring box, sitting next to me. Opening it, the ring lay innocently in its cushion. Sighing, I stuffed it into my pocket.

I got up off the floor and saw the familiar scene of the bakery. There was the bookshelf, table, and counter all as I remembered it. The sky was a deep blue with millions of stars twinkling, signaling that it was sometime during the night. It was almost like I never left. I still had my splatterscope slung over my shoulder as I evaluated my situation. Walking over to the door, I tried turning the knob. It was locked.

"Great," I sighed, leaving me with either staying put until someone finds me or trying to break out. I didn't want to destroy anything of Anna's so I just went with my first option.

A sigh of relief escaped my mouth as I couldn't help but smile. I was back. One thing though that was bothering me just slightly was why Asdil was so...obsessed about winning. She never acted like that before. I shook my head, the rush of the battle slowly ebbing away.

I wandered over to the bookshelf, seeing many different thicknesses of books. If I was going to be stuck here for a while, might as well find a way to entertain myself.

 _Wait._

I looked back outside, still seeing the moon glow ever familiarly at me.

"But it was daytime…" I mumbled to myself, questioning the time change.

Shaking my head, I choose not to wonder too much about it. Maybe that was just how it worked. I drew my attention back to the bookshelve, wondering what human books were about. I picked the first one that I laid my eyes on. Pages were slightly torn and corners were bent when I flipped through it. The more I looked through it, the stranger the thought in my head became. I could read everything that was written on it. In fact, when Anna and I met, we could understand each other. Why didn't I notice this before? Anna's been speaking to me in Squiditarian this whole time. Does that mean that our languages are the same? Or is something else going on?

I placed the book back and picked up another one, flipping open the first page to find many different photos in plastic sleeves. A car drove past the window, sending a berm of light across the room. One photo caught my eye when I noticed a little girl holding a small doll. I took it out to take a closer look, wondering why she looked so familiar. I realized that it was Anna as a child! Her and Meka look so similar, I could have mistaken them if it wasn't for the color of Anna's eyes. They were a rich hazel color that seemed to pop out of the photo.

I put the picture back and looked through the others there were of her. There was one of a baby cradled by someone I guess was her mom. Another one was at the park we were at, her swinging on a swing set with a huge grin. She looked like she was having so much fun in each photo I saw of her. It made me miss her. I spent hours looking through books, not even sure when I fell asleep.


	10. Chapter 10

Anna's POV

I tighten Merlis's hat on my head, heading back to Grandma's in case he came back. I really hope he's not gone. He can't just up and disappear out of my life like that. He didn't appear yesterday but maybe, just maybe, he will appear today.

I took my key out, unlocking the door. A slight blue glow caught my attention. Turning on the lights caused the glow to disappear but I saw Merlis sprawled out on the floor, sleeping soundly. I couldn't help but smile.

He's back!

But he looks different. His hair was now blue and he was wearing new clothes. _Where did he disappear to?_

I closed the door and walked over to him. I saw a sniper gun on his back, reminding me that I still had his ink gun at home. My photo book laid on the ground, opened to a page with me holding about a million lollipops.

I squatted down, removing his hat and placing it aside. His hair was still held up with the same scrunchy as I slowly pulled it off. His hair flowed out over his shoulders. I used the scrunchy to pull up my own hair, pulling it out of the back of the hat. I grabbed one of his tentacles, weighing it in my hand. It was heavy, maybe about the weight of a football. Merlis seemed to shiver slightly at my touch. I used my finger to touch the white suction cup. I felt it retract some but it was squishy.

Satisfying some of my Inkling curiosity, I started to shake Merlis's shoulders.

"Merlis…" I sang, watching as he slowly woke up. He turned to face me, eyes wide open, as his hand shot out and grabbed my leg, forcing me to fall on my butt.

"Ahh!" I screamed.

Merlis laughed, leaning off the floor to look at me. A blush rose on my cheeks. He was awake when I was playing with his hair.

"Hey Anna," he said, sticking his hand out for me.

When I caught sight of him, I sucked in a little breath of air. He looked so... _good_ with his hair down. Now I'm definitely keeping his scrunchy.

Getting off the floor, I dusted my pants.

"Hey, my hat!" Merlis exclaimed, finally noticing his original hat on my head. He reached out for it as I backed away.

"Nope. I'm keeping it. Scrunchy included."

I ninja slapped his hand away as he reached out again.

"No," I yipped out, both of us smiling. I got chased around the store, having to use a chair as a road block to escape.

When Merlis finally gave up, he ran his hands down his hair. "Well I guess I don't really mind." A light blush was on his cheeks after he said that.

"Do you not usually have your hair down?" I asked, walking back over to him.

"Nope, not at all. But I guess I could try it," he told me.

"Sooo…" I said, switching the topic. "Where did you go?"

We made our way out of the shop, locking the door behind myself.

I don't think he noticed his hat I took off earlier. He probably kicked it off into a corner with all the frantic running we did. But I wasn't about to tell him that. Enjoying this moment to the fullest is what I was going to do.

"Well-"

"Wait!" I interrupted. Merlis looked over at me with a face that said 'Really?' I continued anyways. "First, where do you want to go: my house or explore the town more?

"Uhh, let's go to your house," Merlis hesitantly said. "I don't think I can handle the whole town in one day."

"Ok. Cool. Now continue," I told him, turning right on the sidewalk and headed towards my house. We took a quick shortcut through some people's yards to get to my neighborhood which thankfully wasn't too far away from the shop. I guess that's one advantage of living in a small town.

"Well, I found out that when I touch the ring, I get transported back to my world."

A small feeling of hopelessness crept into my head knowing that he could leave whenever he wanted to. I guess I was going to have to convince him to stay. But first…

"Were you glad to be back there?" I asked while clutching my fingers together behind my back.

Merlis seemed to become silent. He was thinking. Every step we took seemed to last an eternity while I waited for his answer. My heart seemed to leap out of my chest. Algebra tests were less stressful than this moment right now.

"I...guess maybe at first? I did suddenly leave so seeing everything again knowing that I was going to come back here was nice," he finally answered.

"Cool, cool," I said, not paying attention at all to what he said. Merlis seemed to be blurring. In fact, everything seemed to be…

"Anna!"


	11. Chapter 11

Merlis's POV

I shot my hands out, feeling the weight of Anna when she fell into my arms.

"Hey Anna!" I worriedly yelled out. She didn't move even when I started to pat her cheeks. I didn't know what to do. _What happened to her?_

I could feel myself start to panic. She wasn't waking up. Thoughts came rushing into my head. My heart started to race in my chest.

"Anna!"

She still wasn't answering me.

I lifted her into my arms and looked around me. I stared down the sidewalk, seeing no one in sight. The area was empty.

 _Ok Merlis...Think. Her house should be somewhere in that direction. That's where we were heading._

"Please be ok," I whispered.

I started to run down the sidewalk as I passed by many different houses. I could feel Anna's head bounce against my chest with every few steps I took.

 _House_

 _House_

 _House_

I skidded to a halt in front of a big house. It was a deep brown color with a large porch with rocking chairs and a large window on the second floor. It looked a little weathered but it fit the surroundings. What caused me to stop was a little kid that sat in the front yard, playing with chalk on the driveway. Meka.

"Meka!" I yelled out, causing her to whip her head around towards me.

"Weird ear man!" She playfully said, getting up off the ground.

"Anna?" an unfamiliar voice called. Someone stood from the porch; a woman who strangely looked like the women holding Anna in the photo I found earlier. She had shoulder length hair colored just like Anna's. She looked to be about in her 30's but as she rushed down towards me, she seemed younger.

"Anna!" she yelled when she got a clear view of the girl in my arms.

"She just suddenly blacked out! I-I didn't know what to do," I spit out. Worry started to eat me up from the inside out. I've never felt this feeling before and I don't like it.

"Hurry! Come inside," she said. She waved at Meka to come inside. Meka complied as she abandoned the chalk and wandered inside with us. The lady must be Anna's mother.

When I took my first step inside, the air smelled of wild flower. At first glance, the room looked warm and cozy, like a summer sunset that was slowly dipping under the horizon. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a staircase that led upstairs but I didn't get to see much more as she rushed me over into another room. There was a large brown couch placed in front of a T.V. that I placed Anna down in. While I accomplished this, Meka came wandering in. Anna's mother quickly motioned her upstairs, telling her to go play in her room for a bit.

I backed away when Anna's mother came flying by, gently placing her hand on her forehead. She quickly pulled away, rushed off into the house somewhere.

I stood there, feeling completely useless. As Anna laid on the couch, I finally caught a glimpse of her face. It seemed to be in pain, her skin seeming a little paler.

After finally coming back to the human world, why did Anna suddenly black out? Something strange is happening to her. I don't know what it is and-

 _What if I caused this?_

 _What if being in contact caused this?_

 _What if ink is bad for humans?_

 _It should be ok because if she-_ I took a gulp of air- _dies, she'll just respawn._

 _But what if-_

Before I could finish my thoughts, Anna's mother came rushing back with a blanket, pillow, and a medical box. Her face was filled with determination but also worry. She threw the blanket over her and placed the pillow under head, seemingly making a makeshift bed of the couch. I took a step forward but quickly retracted. I just stood there, watching hopelessly from the background. There wasn't anything I could do.

"Is she going to be ok?" I asked, finally gathering my nerves to ask.

She turned her head to me, giving me a warm smile. "She's going to be just fine."

That seemed to be just what I needed to hear as I joined her next to Anna. We kneeled there together, watching Anna's stomach slowly rise and go back down. The nerves that were eating me all but disappeared. She was breathing...

"It's just that...she gets attached easily," Anna's mother said.

"Huh?"


	12. Chapter 12

Merlis's POV

I looked over, seeing the lady's face showing a soft smile as she gazed down at Anna.

"When you disappeared, she went out and looked for you everywhere. She thought you might have just teleported somewhere else or some wild thing like that. Spending all day outside and not coming home until dinner was already over, stars peeking out through the night sky. With the sun blazing down on her throughout the day and doing it while on an empty stomach, her body just shut down on her."

"We had a pet cat once that she absolutely fell in love with. She'd spend every waking moment with her. Petting her, feeding her, playing with her; she really loved that cat. She was devastated when she died. We didn't get to keep the cat for long. She cried for days, staying in her room for hours on end. And if you know her at all, you know that she likes adventuring so staying in her room for that long wasn't like her. There wasn't much I could do. If we got another pet, all of this would have happened again and I don't want my baby girl to go through that again. We haven't gotten another pet sense." She stroked a piece of hair away from Anna's face, looking back at me as she continued. "So when you came along, I guess she was scared of losing you. She might get mad at me if I tell you...but she actually doesn't have many friends so she holds tightly onto the ones she makes."

I kneeled there, soaking up everything she said. This new side of Anna made me think differently. I always had people with me, pestering me about new weapons, fashion, or just trying to talk to me. A thought floated into my head.

"So, you know that I'm not really…" I started to say.

"Human? Anna kind of told me everything. I had to know why my daughter was staying out so late. Sorry if it was supposed to be a secret," she said.

"No, no. It's ok." I let out a small chuckle. I guess she isn't the best at keeping secrets. "So you believe her?"

"Well, to be honest, I thought she was just being imaginative. But after seeing you, I can at least say I believe her a little bit. Not everyone can go out in public dressed like you are."

Anna stirred slightly, bringing my attention back to her. Her head rolled back and forth on her pillow until her eyes started to open.

"Ugh, I'm starving," she grumbled, rubbing her eyes. She leaned forward, the blanket sliding off her shoulders.

"Ann-" I began to say until I was interrupted by a loud stomach growl. Anna clutched her stomach, finally noticing me stationed near her feet.

"Merlis! What are you doing here in my house?" she questioned. Another rumble filled the room. "Wait...how did I get home?"

Anna's mom stood up and said, "I'm going to go get you something to eat. Glad that you're awake sweetie."

"Uh, thanks Mom."

I watched as she walked out of the room, carrying the medical kit back with her. I was glad that we-no she-didn't have to use it.

"How'd I get here?" Anna asked again as she swung her legs off the couch. She patted the spot next to her, moving the blanket so I wouldn't sit on it. I took her up on her offer, plopping right next to her. She tossed the blanket over my legs as I looked at her to see a smile on her face. She seemed back to normal.

I took a deep sigh. "Well, we were heading to your house when you suddenly blacked out into my arms. I might have started to panic a little because you wouldn't wake up. So, I just ran around till I happened to find Meka playing outside. Your mom recognized you and called me inside."

"Lucky you then."

"I know. I'm glad that you're ok. I can't have my new friend dying on me," I said, trying to lighten the mood. It seemed to work as Anna laughed.

"Don't worry. I'm not dying anytime soon. So, don't worry," she said.


	13. Chapter 13

Merlis's POV

"I really am surprised you found my house. You must have some amazing luck on your side. Geez I'm hungry." She wrapped her arms around her stomach.

"Ya, I heard you skipped dinner to look for me," I told her, watching as her face froze. "I don't know if I should feel honored that you care that much or…"

Some strange emotion appeared on her face but it disappeared just as quickly. It was almost like she suddenly remembered something. Instead, she shoved her face into the blanket, groaning.

"You weren't supposed to know that. Now I'm just embarrassed."

I didn't know what to say to that. A few minutes passed by, making me want to ask what she remembered. She still didn't look back up, causing me to feel bad for mentioning it. "I mean I don't mind just...you shouldn't overexert yourself for me."

At this, Anna popped her head back up. She opened her mouth, ready to say something, but nothing came out. I was about to speak when words finally tumbled out of her mouth.

"Don't talk like that."

"Like what?"

"Don't downgrade yourself. I searched for you because you're my friend. I care for my friends. If my friends are in trouble, I help them."

I thought back to what Anna's mom said. "You treasure them."

Anna looked up at me, her eyes showing a little shimmer.

"Ya, I treasure them. So, that means you have to stay as my friend."

I let out a little joking laugh. "What? Ya sure, but where did that conclusion come from?"

She didn't get to answer me as her mom walked in, carrying two bowls for us. Handing them to us, I looked in to find golden mac and cheese. There was a spoon stuck in there for us to use.

Anna didn't waste a moment as she said thanks and dug in. Her satisfaction couldn't be more clear every time she popped in a spoonful. Her face seemed to melt as I also started to eat. As soon as I started to taste the cheese, I could tell why. It was beyond delicious. The cookies might have competition for the most delicious thing I've tried in the human world.

In fact, when was the last time that I ate? I pondered that question until both our bowls were empty.

"Hey Merlis?" Anna asked.

I licked the spoon, getting all the cheese off. "Ya?"

"I never really got to hear your answer."

I squinted my eyebrows, trying to remember what she was talking about. Then it clicked.

"About how if I was glad to be back in Inktopolis? I guess you didn't. Well at f-"

"Wait!" Anna interrupted me. "I don't really care about that question anymore. Forget I said anything. I'd rather know more about Inkopolis. How is it like?"

I looked over at Anna, wondering what brought up the question change. But I pushed that aside and answered her new question.

"It's a great city," I started to say, noticing how bland of an answer it was. "That doesn't help much. Well, it's heavily based around fashion and these tournaments we have. Have I told you about the tournaments?"

Anna shook her head.

"It's where two teams of four battle it out with different types of ink weapons like a splatterscope or a roller. You see my weapon over there?" I pointed over at me splatterscope that lay on the floor. "That's a splatterscope."

"Soo, is a roller like a paint roller?" Anna asked me.

I looked at Anna once again. "Ya. Just with ink."

"But how does such a small roller work as a weapon?"

"Well, the rollers are basically about the size of an Inkling. They're huge and you raise them over your head," I raised my hands over my head to demonstrate, "and you fling it down." My hands zipped down, mimicking a perfect flick.

"Cool! So, I'm guessing that the splatterscope is like a sniper rifle? It looks like one." Anna seemed excited about the topic, making me want to tell her more.

"Ya. You can even roll Inklings over with the splatroller and they explode into ink. It's really satisfying to do. They try and defend themselves and you come in with a heavy duty roller and just ' _bam'_! It's over for them!" I jumped slightly on the couch, getting into the words I was saying. I could imagine it all in my head.

Looking to see if Anna shared my enthusiasm, I was shocked to see a horrified face. Her eyes were wide in fright. She seemed scared of me.

"Uh-"

"You kill one another and you're excited about that?!" Anna almost yelled, getting up off the couch. She took the blanket with her, leaving me feeling a little exposed.

"NO! No. It's not like that," I frantically stood up, needing to explain. "Everyone respawns. They just start back up at the spawn area. No one actually dies."

Anna calmed down immediately. "Like a videogame...But how? You are a living and breathing per- Inkling."

I looked at Anna in slight confusion. "Don't you guys respawn?" I said slowly.

"No. When we die, we die for good. Forever," Anna said with some kind of emotion which I couldn't tell. Maybe she was remembering her pet cat.

My mouth hung open slightly, barely comprehending what she was saying.

"Well, many Inklings did die in The Great War but...that happened long, long ago. Now Inklings just die from old age. I thought there wasn't any other way to die. Then how do humans die? Your mom said something about hunger. Can you die just from not having en-" I suddenly stopped my ranting once Anna put her hands on my shoulders. She stared directed into my eyes, my sudden growth of worry for her diminishing.

"I'm fine. Yes. Us humans can die from many things but it takes more than slight hunger to kill me." Her voice sounded strong compared to my worrying one. Her newly discovered weak nature shocked me. I didn't think humans would be this fragile.

"Ok. I believe you."

Anna smiled, letting her hands drop down. "Good. Now you're going to tell me more later because I suddenly have the urge to play with some ink. I'm going to go grab your other gun and we can go have our own little war out in the woods. You in?"

Glad to get out of the topic of death, I agreed.


	14. Chapter 14

Anna's POV

My heart pounded in my ears like the chimes on an old grandfather clock. I gripped the splattershot (That's what Merlis told me it was called) tight in my hands, using the tree to hide myself. Remains of a previous battle lay all around me, the two sides' bright colors mixed together.

The enemy could be in one of those color puddles, watching me as I start to panic slightly. But I knew he was in a tree somewhere, waiting for me to pop my head out. I didn't think he would be so good at sniping.

I shook my gun slightly, hearing a small swoosh of ink inside. It would only give me about two shots.

"I know you're hiding over there Anna. Just come out and admit your defeat. Maybe then I won't have to blast you into tomorrow," Merlis said, trying to draw me out.

I knew he knows where I was. He always knows, shown by the complete submersion of my shirt in blue ink. A small laser appeared to my right, moving around in a circle. It then moved to my left, doing the same thing. He was taunting me.

The path ahead of me was littered in trees, making a good retreat path if I could do it right. If I ran far enough, he'll be forced to move spots and that'll give me a chance of finding him. I formed a plan in my head, feeling more confident the more I went over it.

Taking a deep breath, I bolted it farther into the woods. On my first few steps I heard the shot of ink fire. A blast of ink landed to my right, my first stroke of luck. I curved to my left, hoping over a fallen tree and landing in a pile of dead leaves. The surefire crunch of leaves followed after along with a persistent Inkling caused me to smile. I heard the same crunch of leaves only a couple seconds later; my second stroke of luck. That means he took the bait.

Only a few feet away, I jump into the small ditch. Twisting around to face where I was coming from, I aimed my gun in that direction. A flash of blue caught my eye up in the trees. How I didn't hear him climbing up was beyond me. I then spotted his face scanning the area around me, skimming right over me. I couldn't help but feel triumphant as I aimed right at his chest.

While looking off in the distance, his lips twisted up into a smile and his eyes snapped together with mine. In a split second, his gun was aimed at me and I saw the shot get fired before I heard it.

Cold ink covered my head like an ice cold shower. A small squeak came from me. I hurriedly wiped my face enough so I could see. Merlis stood above me, leaning against his splatterscope. He had the same triumphant smile I had only a moment ago.

"Merlis! How!?"

He gave me a hand getting up, the ink already dripping down my shirt. I shivered, one stream of ink running down my back.

"You're not as sneaky as you think you are. It also doesn't help you to have a bright blue shirt in the middle of the woods," Merlis explained.

"Thanks to you."

"Well it's not my fault I do these battles almost every day. You get good at guessing what Inklings would do next. Look at the bright side though, you're better than you were the first time."

"What are you talking about! I completely would have won the first time if there was enough ink in the splattershot!" I exclaimed.

Merlis strolled away, standing under some of his splattered ink.

"I might have been going easy on you then. You would have been _destroyed_ by me," he said in the most challenging sounding voice I heard him speak in yet.

He immediately submerged himself before I could respond. The small ripples bubbled away as I yelled out in anger. "Merlis!"

 _I thought I was good at this game but apparently not._

A chase commenced as I followed him back to the battlefield, wanting to get my revenge.


	15. Chapter 15

Anna's POV

He was faster in the ink than I was running but he would pop back up, look at me with a taunting smile, and swim away right before I caught him.

This went on for a few minutes before I got tired of chasing him around with no prevail. Instead, I decided to just stop.

Merlis kept going, expecting me to still be chasing him. So when he popped up, I found a little bit of joy in seeing his confused face.

"Come on Anna. Get me if you can!" Merlis said, trying to get me to follow him again. Again with the taunting.

Once I knew that he had saw me not moving, our eyes meeting from a far, I turned around. Plan "Angry Facade" was a go.

"Anna...Come on. You're not _that_ angry, are you?"

I didn't answer him. Instead, I folded my arms for extra effect.

"Anna," he said in a softer tone. He sounded closer, but not close enough. I needed to push this one more level.

"You know what Merlis? I don't think I can be friends with you," I declared. The words tasted sour in my mouth. I never imagined I'd say them. Once I said them, I wish I could take them back. But I couldn't because it was all part of the plan.

Merlis's voice seemed to teleport right next to my ear. I couldn't lie that I jumped slightly.

"You don't mean that Anna. Come on, I'm sorry. I didn't mea-"

I cut him off by throwing myself at his body, pushing him down to the ground. I landed on top of him, his surprised face worth it. His bright blue hair popped under the orange ink, blinding me if I hadn't been looking at it for half an hour already.

My shirt was still slightly wet from the few times I tripped while chasing Merlis. One blue drop from my hair landed right between his eyes. The black around them didn't help me keep my eyes away from his. The golden color captivated me.

"I accept your apology," I smugly said. "And for future reference, I don't like being gone easy on."

I saw his sharp teeth disappear as Merlis closed his mouth shut, his eyes squinting.

"If you say so."

My whole weight shifted out of my control. I felt his leg lifting mine as I started to lean to the left.

"AAH!" I yelled out in surprise.

My body got thrown on the ground as I felt my wrists getting pinned down beside my head. The cold ink underneath me started to prick my skin.

Merlis's sharp gaze bore right into me. Squinted eyes brought out his animalistic side and made him look all the more dangerous. He was like a predator that just caught his meal. I was stunned.

Now it was my mouth that was hung open. I was so easily flipped over like it was of no effort for him. _Where was he storing all of this strength?_

"Wow Merlis. I didn't know you were this strong," I half stuttered.

Instead of getting off me like I expected him to do, he kept staring into my eyes. I had to look away.

"Anna. Look at me," he said.

I did.

"Don't joke around like that."

I looked away.

"Sorry," I said.

"Anna."

I looked back.

"I don't have many friends or any for that matter, but when I do find one that I genuinely enjoy spending time with, I don't joke around about leaving them." His serious tone was impossible to ignore. It made me feel so guilty.

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm the same way. It was a stupid thing to do. My competitive nature just got to me. I promise I won't say it again," I tell him.

"Good."

He finally let go of me as I brought my hands back in front of my chest. I didn't know how to feel about what happened.

"Merlis. I should probably tell you something," I chose to say.

I sat up, looking at the ink all around us. I wondered how long it will take for it to disappear.

"I don't have many friends either. So I'm glad I have you as one."

Merlis looked at me, flashing a smile.

"Me too."


	16. Chapter 16

Anna's POV

I felt my face warm up slightly, causing me to put my hands on my cheeks.

"You ok Anna?"

"Ya, I'm just fine," I told him.

Merlis didn't seem content with my answer as he asked, "You sure?"

"I'm fine," I stressed. I put my hands down.

"Are you telling me the truth? You're not just telling me that so I wouldn't worry?" Merlis persisted to ask me.

"Hey Merlis?"

"Yes?" he answered.

"When was the last time you had a girlfriend?"

This stopped his bombardment of questions quickly. He seemed to be at a loss of words.

"Well...um. Why the sudden question?"

I got up from the ground, trying to shake off some of the ink on my shirt.

"Just thought it would stop you from asking me if I was ok. Guess it worked."

I gave him my hand, finding a little bit of joy from his slightly brightened cheeks. I can't be the only one blushing here.

"No. I've never had a girlfriend."

Both now standing, we started to venture towards the house. Merlis soon shook off the embarrassment of the question and tossed me the same one.

"So, have you ever had a boyfriend?"

"Did you forget already? Remember Jack?" I answered. I wish I could forget about him that easily.

Disgust couldn't have been more clear. "Oh ya. Him. Why did you even go out with that guy? You deserve so much better."

"Aw, thanks Merlis." Taking a deep breath, I started to tell my reasoning. "Well, I wasn't the smartest decision. He was relatively a nice guy at school. Though I didn't see him that often. Something you should know about me is that I'm what people would call...easily attachable. Once someone shows a little bit of kindness to me, I think they would like to be friends. He was kind towards me and I automatically thought he actually liked me. But I found out he just wanted to get into my pants."

"Get into your pants?"

I felt my face automatically fall into resting mode.

"Oh please don't tell me…"

Merlis's face showed no sign that he was kidding with me.

"Why did I expect that you would know? Well...uh. I'll find you a book and you'll read all about human anatomy, ok? Just...please don't turn out like Jack."

Melis looked at me, really looked at me. I saw his eyes trace my body like he was finally noticing some things that were different from his. "Ok."

Merlis asked, "So even though you know you get attached easily, you still think the same way?"

I kicked a twig out of the way. "Ya. I guess I do. Give everyone a shot."

The rest of the walk back was calm. Trees swayed and caused the ground to look like an ocean on land. The ink on my shirt had long dried. While I enjoyed the sound of nature, I was starting to get curious.

"So did you figure out how the ring got back to Inkopolis?"

Merlis's face seemed to dawn in realization. "No...I didn't find out anything about it. Truth be told, I probably should have done that. I kinda was preoccupied with other thoughts."

"Like?"

"Like making sure I get back here."

I let out a big smile, feeling like I accomplished something huge.

"You just couldn't resist me," I said playfully, flicking my hair for a sassy effect.

"Oh my gosh." Rolling his eyes and smiling, he pushed my shoulder slightly.

"Don't start with me, Merlis," I warned him, knowing that we would start a whole new battle if he did. But he heeded my warning, only laughing at what I said.

I was kind of surprised how much of a teenager he was acting like. I guess human and Inkling teens act the same. It would be weird with we mentally aged differently.

"So, what we know so far," I said, getting back on topic, "is that when you touch the ring, you can transport between the two worlds."

"Times," Merlis said.

"Huh?"

"Between the two times. Humans used to live in my time, before the flood. So that means I live in the future."

"Oh ya! I remember you telling me something like that." I walked for a little bit more, soaking in what it really meant. "I feel a little sad thinking that the human race is going to become extinct. I know how but not when. What if it happens next year?"

Merlis placed his hand on my shoulder. "You don't have to worry about that. From what I learned, it took a while for the water levels to engulf everything you people created."

I looked at him, giving him a joking smile. "I'm not sure if that was supposed to make me feel better or not."


	17. Chapter 17

Merlis's POV

We eventually made it to the house, entering through the backyard door. Once we stepped inside, making sure to take off our shoes, Anna looked up at the clock on the wall.

"K, 11:25. So we have about an hour and thirty minutes till lunch. What do you want to do?"

I thought about it, trying to think of what we _could_ do.

"I don't know. You have any ideas?"

"Ohohoh, I have many ideas," Anna said mischievously.

"I don't know if I should be afraid or not."

Anna laughed.

"I have few games in mind that would be fun. Choose either 1, 2, or 3."

I looked at her with suspicious eyes, wondering what she had thought up of.

"1."

"Congrats! You choose the game Truth or Dare!" She said in a victorious voice.

"How do you play?" I asked.

"Well, it's usually played with more than two people but you would choose one person and ask them 'Truth or Dare' and they would pick one. If they picked 'Truth', you can ask them any question and they have to answer. If they pick 'Dare', you can tell them to do anything you say. Think you got it?"

"...Sure. Let's just roll with it."

"Ok. Now choose between A, B, C, or D."

"Again?"

Anna waved her hands. "Yes again!"

"Ok...uh B."

Anna paused.

"Well ok then. Follow me then."

I then followed Anna up a staircase, passing by a few paintings until she stopped in front of a door.

"Congrats, you chose…" Anna open up the door, revealing a small room.

"...my room!"

I looked in, seeing a small bed up against the window. The forest could be seen from it. There was a messy desk stacked with paper and a bookshelf right next to it.

"Is it ok for me to come in here? I kinda feel like I'm invading your privacy," I cautiously said.

"Hey. You chose it so now you have to deal with it. And I don't really mind. It's not like you have a perverted mind."

I didn't know exactly what she meant by that, but I walked in. There were drawings hung all over one wall. They looked so amazing, obviously having time poured into them.

"Wow," I muttered.

Anna walked past me, strolling towards a small bucket on the bookshelf. There were all kinds of inkbrushes in there, even a mini inkroller.

"No way!" I exclaimed as I walked over. Picking up an inkbrush, I found it cute how tiny it was.

"You paint?"

"Ya, on those stormy days when I can't go out."

I pointed at the paintings. "You drew those?"

She nodded her head proudly.

"They're amazing."

"Thanks."

Drawing my attention back to the inkbrush, I tried swishing it like I would in battle which caused Anna to giggle. I probably did look ridiculous but I found this so amusing. There was an inkroller that I picked up, rolling it against my hand. It felt ticklish.

"Attack!" I yelled, rolling my mini weapon on Anna's arm.

"Ahh!" Anna playfully yelled, grabbing an inkbrush from the cup.

"I told you not to start this again with me," Anna giggled, stabbing me in the chest.

"Hey!" I said. It didn't hurt, but I faked pain anyways. "That's not how you use that!" I complained, my competitive mode showing. "You have to flick it back and forth rapidly."

"Well too bad. Now are you going to give up or take me on like a man!" Anna theatrically said, her face full of joy.

I smirked, enjoying this competitive side to her. "You're going to lose, even if you bend the rules. Like you told me to do, I'm not going to go easy."

She paused for a split second, a pink tint coming to her cheeks, before she said, "First to three point wins." She stood in a weird pose with one of her legs up, hands raised straight in the air.

"Aaaaaahhhnd go!"

She started to wiggle back and forth.

I could feel myself laughing from my stomach. She looked ridiculous.

"Wooouuuuuhhh!"

"Oh my Gosh, what in the world are yo-" I didn't get to finish my sentence when Anna struck. Her foot shot out, causing me to jump to the side. That was my mistake though because it gave her the chance to strike me in the chest.

"Point number two for Anna," she said smugly.

"What kind of battle is this?" I complained.

"It's one that I'm going to win!"

She struck out again but I saw it coming. I jumped back this time, watching as Anna fumbled forward. _So easy_.

"Point one for Merlis," I said in the same smugness Anna had. It was a small room so I didn't have as much movement as I wished. I had to take extra precaution not to knock anything over. Anna didn't seem to have that same thought of mind.

Catching her foot on the desk chair, she started to fall. I just barely caught her surprised expression before I swooped in, cushioning her fall.

We both lay there, her on top of me. Anna's eyes were wide; mine probably were too. Her hazel eyes seemed endless as we locked sights with each other. Her ponytail hung over her shoulder, acting like a curtain.

My stomach suddenly seemed to flip.

"Uh...An-"

"Point number three to Anna. It looks like Anna is the winner!"

Anna got up off of me, creating cheering sounds with her mouth while waving to her 'fans'. She pranced around, being hyper. I stayed on the floor, watching her celebrate.

If she could move around like that, then she probably didn't get hurt. My arms seemed to stay glued to the ground, not wanting to push myself up and complain about her dirty trick. My stomach was still flipping.

"Come on Merlis. Tell me again how I was going to lose?"

Anna stood above me, giving me a smile.

 _What was that feeling?_

I got hoisted up. "I call cheats," I said.

"All's fair in love and war. Now here, give me your paint roller," Anna commanded me.

Handing it to her, my fingers brushed against hers. They felt warm.


	18. Chapter 18

Hey guys! I wanted to try doing small Author's notes in the beginning of chapters like I see other writers do.

Though it might be fun... .-.

FYI: Lots of talking in this chapter ..

* * *

Anna's POV

Merlis sat on the floor, playing with some paint and paper I gave him while I sat idly at my desk.

 _I swear he was doing this on purpose._

 _Either he's being really flirty or he's doing all this without knowing. If it's the latter, how in the world does he not have a girlfriend already?_

 _Merlis's face was only inches from mine. I could feel his breathe tickling my nose. His hair poked out on top, the blue vibrant contrasting the white. His golden eyes looked into mine._

 _My god. He was so doing that on purpose._

I felt my cheeks warm up slightly.

 _He can't be liking me already._ I can't be liking him already! _We only met like two days ago. I had to stop thinking like this. It's probably just how Inklings usually act. Get with the program Anna. He isn't human so why should he act like one?_

I tried focusing on my drawing and it worked for a while until I finished it, leaving me with nothing to do.

Peeking behind me, I saw Merlis concentrating on some painting he was doing. He looked up, our eyes meeting once again. My body froze.

"Hey, Anna?" Merlis casually said.

"Yes?" I answered, trying to sound just as casually.

"Can you smile for me?"

"..."

I did, leaving me confused.

His eyes bore into me, causing me to stiffen my face. I couldn't drag my eyes away, but thankfully, he did instead. He scribbled something on the paper, using quick motions of the paintbrush. I couldn't see what it was, but I became curious.

He looked back up, then down, repeating this process multiply times. Sounds of grunts and happy chirps came from him, giving me clues in when he messed up or something turned out good.

"Are you drawing me?" I finally asked when I was sure he was.

Merlis froze. His hand paused in the middle of a stroke.

"...Ya." He started painting again.

"Can I see?"

"...No."

"Why not." _Is he embarrassed?_

"Because...it's not as good as yours."

"Merlis," I tenderly said. "Don't compare your work to mine. Of course it's not going to be as good. I have a painter for a mother. She been giving me painting lessons for a while now and I'm pretty sure this is the first time you even tried."

I heard him mumble something.

"Hm?"

"I used to draw in the ink when I was bored. They didn't last long but I would say I got pretty good at them. The only thing I hated about it was that I had to use a different finger for each color. This inkbrush is so helpful in that."

A laugh escaped my lips as I tried imagining him as a little kid.

"It's a paintbrush, by the way."

Merlis looked up at me.

"You're using paint so it's a paintbrush."

"What the difference? They both look and feel the same."

I had to think about the question for a second. "The make up I guess? Huh. Now I'm wondering if you can swim through paint just like ink. Ohhhh! Now I have to show you a paintball fight. It's probably the closest thing to your turf wars," I said. Now I was going to have to find some paint guns. Maybe we have some in the basement.

"Do you have any ink with you?" he asked.

"I don't have any ink brushes or bottles but I have a pen."

"A pen?"

My eyes widened. "You've never heard of a pen before?"

"No."

I quickly shuffled through my piles of paper, finding a ballpoint pen. I tossed it over to him, making sure to throw just too high for him to catch. While he fell backward, failing to catch it, I stole his painting.

"Hey, it's not that bad."

"What? Anna! Give that back! I'm not done!" He tried getting it back but I could tell he wasn't really trying. It wasn't the Mona Lisa but it was definitely better than an average high schooler's work. If he practiced some more, he could eventually become a good artist.

"Actually, wow. The more I look at it, the better it gets. You really know how to capture my best features."

Settling back down, Merlis said, "Thanks. You're my first human to be drawn so you should feel honored. Now can I have it so I can finish?"

I handed it back to him, hoping he would give it to me when he finishes. If we joined our artistic skills, I wonder what kind of art we could make. My cheeks warmed up.

"Hey Anna?"

"Ya?"

"Weren't we going to play that 'Truth or Dare' game?"

My eyes widened.

"I completely forgot that! Well, truth or dare I guess," I said, jumping straight into the game. "Wait. Do I need to repeat the rules?"

"No. I got it," Merlis said. "Truth."

"Wimp. Ok, I'll start easy on you. What's your favorite color?"

Merlis paused, giving thoughts to the question.

"I don't have one."

I got up off the chair, sitting down next to Merlis. "Come on. Everyone has some color they like more than the others."

Peering over his shoulder, I saw that the painting was almost finished. There were a few spots I could see that were obvious mistakes but he definitely got down my face. He moved to the eyes.

"Well, I do kinda like hazel. It's a pretty color."

"True. True," I said, wondering what about that color drew him to it.

Merlis put down his brush, finally finished. He held it up, letting both of us admire the artwork.

"Here."

I held it, careful not to touch the still wet paint. I looked...beautiful.

"Thank you Merlis. I love it."

"I'm glad you do. But in exchange for that, can I have my scrunchy back? I kind of miss my hair up."

He touched his hair, giving me a hopeful smile.

"Sure. I guess I tortured you enough."

Grabbing my ponytail, I slowly started to pull it out.

"On second thought," I started to say.

Merlis gave me a sideways look, almost like he was challenging me.

"I'm kidding." I pulled out the scrunchy, handing it back. Hair spilled over my shoulders like a waterfall.

"Well, truth or dare?" he asked, pulling his hair back. My eyes took a second to memorize how his hair looked up.

I walked over to my desk, placing the painting there to dry. "Dare."

"So I can ask you to do anything?"

"Just about."

"I dare you to draw a drawing of me."

I perked my eyes. "Sure. I thought you were going to do something more sinister. What medium do you want me to use?"

"Medium?"

"Colored pencils, paint, pen. Whatever."

Merlis handed me the pen.

"Pen it is then," I said, grabbing it. Settling against the bed with a piece of paper in hand, I began. Merlis sat beside me, looking over my shoulder and watching my every stroke.

"That's ink?"

"Yup. Now truth or dare?" I asked.

Merlis seemed to ponder it.

"Dare."

"I dare you to turn into a squid," I said without hesitation.

He gave me a perplexed look. "Why?"

Flicking my wrist, I started to draw his face. Bold lines helped pop out his hair while I used thin ones for his eyes.

"Because you look cute as one."

Merlis scratch his hair, looking anywhere besides me. I was proud of myself for being so bold and in exchange, I got to see his flustered side.

"Ok," he said. I was expecting him to refuse, already coming up with another dare. So when a blue squid appeared in my room, I was taken back. He lay there, his large golden eyes staring up at me.

 _He looked so adorable!_

Setting the drawing aside, I poked his tentacle.

He turned around, bumping the top of his head into my thigh.

 _I want a plushie version of him._

Hopping away, he started to jump around the room, even on and off the bed. Small plopping sound came from him whenever he moved around. I couldn't help but laugh, watching as he started to spin in circles.

"Ok," I barely said through my shortness of breath, "that's enough for me." Maybe I should ask Mom if she could make a plushie of him.

Someone started to walk up the stairs, making me wonder if my thoughts called her.

Merlis, still in squid form, swam over to me. Using his head, he nudged my arm over himself and jumped into my lap. He felt cold against my skin.

"You going to turn back? I think my Mom is coming," I told him. He made no notion that he understood me and stayed right where he was.

"Merlis?"

Three knocks on the door and it swung open, revealing Mom. "Anna, it…" She fell silent, looking at what was in my lap. "When did you get a new plushie? I thought you grew out of those."

I smiled at her. "And I still haven't. This is Merlis in squid form. Wouldn't he look adorable as a plushie though?"

At my comment, he jumped out of my lap, frightening Mom slightly.

"I think the word you mean is fresh?" Merlis said, back in his original form. "Hi Anna's mom. I hope I didn't scare you too much."

Mom stood at the doorway, her hand on her face. "Oh don't worry about that Merlis. I was just slightly surprised. It's nice to see you guys are getting along. Well then, I guess there's no arguing that you really are not from around here. I hope you're not here to take over the world," she said, trying to be funny.

Merlis scratched his head while I stood up, glad to get my legs moving. I'm happy that she didn't freak out. She was always so hard to scare.

"I came to tell you lunch is ready. You're not allergic to anything Merlis? Do you have any food you dislike?" Mom questioned him, still as kind as ever. He just shook his head, smiled, and watched as Mom walked back out.

"Your mom is really kind, Anna," he said. I walked out of my room, sensing Merlis following me.

"Ya. I'm glad for that."

The table was set for four, plates full of pasta, meatballs, fruits, vegetables, and a large bowl of salad in the middle.

"Pasta!" I excitedly said, rushing over to my usual seat. Meka was already crunching down on a carrot at the table. Mom walked out with a pitcher of water, pouring some out for herself. I was about to slurp up some delicious pasta when I noticed Merlis still standing.

"Come on Merlis. You can sit next to me."

He wandered over, careful not to make the chair squeak when he scooted in. He sat on the edge and fidgeted with his fingers, looked towards me and then to Mom.

"Don't tell you are allergic to pasta," I said defeatedly.

Merlis waved his hands franticly. "No, no. It's been awhile since I've eaten with others. It was always just me."

"Oh sweety. I'm so sorry. I'm always here if you want to talk about it," Mom said, ready to give out hugs.

"No! They aren't dead. They're doing fine. It's just that I live by myself. It's an apartment in the city that they help pay for. They live farther away so it's harder to get together."

Mom sat down across from me, placing the pitcher next to the salad. "Well, you can consider us like your second family. I'll be glad to give you a place to sleep and feed you if you ever need it."

"Thank you, Anna's mom."

"Just call me Mia," Mom said, giving her signature smile.

I dug in, watching as Merlis relaxed and got more comfortable. He went for the meatball first, plopping it into his mouth and letting out a satisfying sigh.

"Good, right?" I asked.

Merlis nodded his head. "The human world sure has some delicious food!"

"Glad you think so. So what kind of food do you have over at Inkopolis?"

"Well," Merlis started to say, stabbing the pasta with his fork, "we mostly have meats. Not many Inklings like to eat plants."

"Are you one of those Inklings?" If he was, he might have to be hungry for a little bit. We usually eat lots of greens.

Finally getting two or three noodles on his fork, Merlis placed it in his mouth. "No. I don't do it often but I don't hate it."

Twirling pasta on my fork, I plopped a huge bundle into my mouth. Giving a small embarrassed smile, Merlis did the same.

"We have some leftover fish in the refrigerator I could heat up for you, Merlis. Here, let me go do that," Mom said, getting up from her seat.

"Oh no. You don't need to do that," Merlis said in a panicky voice. "The food here tastes really good so I don't mind."

I smiled, enjoying watching him trying to convince Mom. Maybe he needed some help.

"Why don't we just save it for dinner? That gives you time to heat it up properly. Or you can just buy some fresh fish and we can all have it for dinner?"

Mom looked over at Merlis. "Are you ok with that?"

He nodded his head, agreeing to stay for dinner at the same time.

Mom sat back down as I heard Merlis let out a sigh of relief.

"So, how did you get from Inkopolis, I believe you said, to this small town of ours?" Mom asked.

Pulling out the ring box, he handed it to Mom. She looked at it confusingly, opening it slowly.

"It all started with this. Someone gifted it to me one day and when I touched it, I ended up in the forest."

Mom picked it out from the box and noticed the name engraved on the inside.

"Mother?" she asked to no one.

"Ya, apparently it's Lada's. It somehow got to the Inkling world. It's so strange," I told her.

I placed my hand out so I could look at it, too. Mom placed it in my palm and that's when everything turned white.


	19. Chapter 19

Double chapter for you guys :3

Also, I'm going to try to upload a chapter each week but that may turn to every two. All depends on how I'm feeling upload day.

* * *

Merlis's POV

"Anna!" I yelled out.

When the familiar white light died out, Anna was gone. All that was left was an empty chair from where she was seconds ago. I stood up in shock, a squeak of protest coming from the chair sliding against the wood, and stared at where she just was.

Strange sounds started behind me. I turned around to see Anna's mom talking but I couldn't make out what she was saying. Her mouth was moving but all that came out was gibberish.

"What?"

More sounds from her.

I can't understand her. _I can't understand her!_ Why? What's happening? I could only moments ago; what's different?

The ring.

It was all the ring. Somehow, the ring had to be able to translate the language into one I understood. Stupid! Of course, humans can't understand Inkling.

Calm down Merlis. Try thinking this through.

But then what about Anna? She just disappeared in a white light, just like how I disappeared.

 _Wait._

Maybe she got transported into Inkopolis like I did.

 _No._

 _No. No. No. No._

This is bad. Really bad. Who knows what others would do if they found a human, _living_ and _breathing_ , in Inkopolis. She'll probably get captured and sent away. There would be a giant outbreak in confusion and chaos.

If she has the ring, at least she _should_ be able to understand what everyone was saying. I hope that's how it works.

Mia tried talking again, drawing my attention back to her. Her voice was quiet but worry plastered all over her face.

That's right. Don't freak out, Merlis. You must be calm so Anna's mom won't freak out. I told Anna that when I touched the ring, I can travel between these two times so she knows how to get back. All she has to do is touch it before anything bad happens.

I gazed into Mia's eyes, trying to convey that everything was going to be fine. I had to trust Anna. She'll be fine.

Anna's POV

I rubbed my eyes.

"Ugh, what happened… Merlis?" I asked, hoping he would tell me.

 _Wait. A bright white light? Didn't that happen when Merlis got transported to Inkopolis?_

…

Flashing my eyes open, I found myself outside, a tall building in front of me. It was dark with lights twinkling off in the distance. There was a whirling sound next to me, a vending machine I think, as I saw a figure sitting in the corner. The street lamp above me flickered on as I saw him. He had spiky purple hair, having small sea urchin looking animals lying around him.

Our eyes locked sights, neither of us moving. He was staring. I was staring. His eyes swept my figure. I was doing the same to him.

 _I think...I'm in Inkopolis._

"Hey…" he said with a calm attitude. His figure softened, causing mine to do the same. At least it didn't look like he was going to freak out as much as I wanted to. "Long trip?"

I didn't know if I should run, but right now, the situation seemed to be under control. Running away into a city that I didn't know is probably a really stupid idea.

"In some ways…" I chose to say. The ring box lay next to him, closed and waiting for someone to pick it up. The guy noticed my gaze and picked up the box.

"Yours?" He stuck out his hand and waited for me to take it. He seemed nice at least. For never having seen a human before, he sure was calm about this.

Taking it, I told him thank you. The box still had the ring inside.

"I wouldn't go out there if I was you," the guy said. "Who knows what they would do if they found a human just wondering the streets."

Looking up, I stared at him. He didn't seem to mind as he went on with his business.

"Why are you so chill about this? Shouldn't you be freaking out?" I finally asked.

He took a minute before answering. "You said the name Merlis when you woke up and I so happened to know his circumstances. It just all clicked in my head. I'm one of the few that believe what Asdil said. You appeared in a bright light just like how Merlis disappeared. That's not normal. You should consider yourself lucky that these tall building blocked out the blinding light."

I fiddled with the box, feeling like I needed to thank him somehow.

"As a thank you for not freaking out, if you have some questions you're wondering about, I can answer them." That seemed fair enough to me. I would want answers if someone randomly appeared before me.

"Since you offered, I have a few questions I'd love answered. It's not every day I get to meet a human."

I walked over, taking a seat next to him. "You really are calm about this."

He gave me a smile. "Well, so are you."

I smiled back, feeling like we were already friends. "Well, Merlis told me once that to go back to the human world, he just had to touch the ring. So, I'm not that worried about that."

"Oh, so you're friends with Merlis already?"

I tapped my feet on the ground, pulling my knees closer. "Ya."

In turn, he tapped his long fingers on the ground. "It's nice to know he is doing well. How about you?"

I expected him to ask more human related questions. I was a little surprised. "I'm fine I guess. My name's Anna by the way. A human. I forgot to introduce myself."

We shook hands.

"I'm Spyke. A sea urchin. It's nice to meet you."

"Same. This is Inkopolis, right?" I asked him, just to be sure.

"Yes. Though I have to say that you were lucky to come here at night. If it was during the day, Inklings would be here with me."

"I guess I took some of Merlis's luck for myself," I jokingly said. I hope he wasn't freaking out at home along with Mom. Merlis knows I know how to get back so he's probably just waiting. And he might have to wait a little bit more. Also, he can just explain to Mom what happened.

"So, how are you tonight? It seems kind of lonely here in this alley."

"It's not lonely. I have all these little guys to keep me company. Truth be told, I was about to leave for my home before you came."

"Oh!" I felt bad because I thought he was homeless, sitting here this late.

"Would you like to visit? It's just in that apartment over there. I actually have an apartment close towards Merlis's."

 _Wait for me just a little bit more._

"Sure. I always wanted to explore Inkopolis ever since Merlis first mentioned it," I happily agreed. I think I just made my second otherworldly friend.


	20. Chapter 20

Anna's POV

His apartment was relatively normal except for all the urchins lying around.

"Here, put these clothes on." He tossed me some kind of blue dress with a squid hat.

"What for?" I asked.

"You said you wanted to explore, didn't you? Dressed like that, maybe no one will notice that you're human."

I wanted to ask why he had a dress with him but it looked new and clean so I chose not to question his generosity.

"But isn't it like midnight here? You're probably really sleepy," I said, trying to hide my disappointment. Why was it midnight here when the sun was still blazing down on me back home?

"Don't worry about me. A couple hours is nothing."

"You sure?"

"I wouldn't say it if I wasn't sure. Now go get changed," he told me. I gave him a warm smile as I strolled towards the bathroom.

Stepping in, I started to change. The dress was a little small but the open design helped give me space. The white hat looked adorable as I gave a little spin. Inkling clothes looked so cute.

We walked back outside. He showed me Merlis's apartment but it was closed, like it should be. I was half tempted to break and enter but that would cause too many problems.

The familiar thumping of train tracks caught my attention. A sound played through the speaker as it came in as I danced slightly to the beat. Inklings filtered out of the train, only a few from what I could tell. Spyke tapped my shoulder as he brought my attention to the main square of Inkopolis. Inklings were sparse along the square but what caught my sight was a giant fish creature coiled around a tower. It was similar to a catfish but it's spiraled whiskers were flowing with yellow energy. Electricity.

"That is the Great Zapfish. It's what powers everything here. Withou-"

"Spyke! Strange seeing you out this late," interrupted someone from behind us. I turned around and saw another Inkling walking up to the two of us. His eyes drifted to mine as he slowed to a stop. "And who's this?" he asked. His eyes stared into mine as a spark of confusion seemed to appear.

"This is Anna. She's new so I decided to show her around," Spyke told him.

"Well welcome then. My name is Chey." We shook hands, his being the same slickness as Merlis's. When I looked back up, his eyes seemed to widen.

"It's a really cool city you have here even though I've only seen so little," I told him.

He recovered and answered, "Thanks. One of the busiest cities."

Spyke gave a small yawn as he said, "How about we continue exploring?"

"No. No," Chey said, "Let me show her around. You seem so tired. I know this city like the back of my hand."

Spyke glanced at me. "I already promised Anna I would show her around."

"No. It's fine! You seem tired anyways so you should go get some rest," I quickly said. "I don't want you to suddenly fall asleep on me."

"Great! Just let me make a phone call real quick and we can get right to it."

"Ok," I said.

Spyke smiled as he waved us off, walking back to his apartment.

 _I might be able to make another friend today._

Once Chey finished, I asked, "So where to next?"

He looked around us, seemingly searching for something. "I know this really good restaurant that you will love. Everyone who comes to Inkopolis has to go there."

"Cool!" I excitedly said. But then I remembered that I didn't have any money on me. Human money probably doesn't even work here. There being no humans any everything. "I don't have any money though. I-I forgot it at Spyke's."

Chey gave me a kind smile. "My treat then."

We walked away from the center of the city as I gave one more look. A feeling of approaching danger washed over me as I gave a slight shiver.

We were still walking, having already been ten minutes. It's not that I didn't mind. I got to see lots of Inkling things, but I was starting to think it was taking too long. Maybe he forgot where it was.

"Ok here we are."

Guess I spoke too soon. We stood in front of an older looking building that could have seen better days. I couldn't exactly make out any details because there weren't any street lamps next to us but it didn't feel like a popular place.

"Chey? Where are we?" I wearily asked. Instinctively, I put my hand in my pocket, feeling nothing but air. My eyes widened as I looked at him. Chey didn't say anything. His back was to me so I couldn't see what he was pulling out of his pocket.

"Chey?"

"I'm sorry about this."

Someone stabbed a needle in the back of my neck, causing my senses to blur and my body to feel weak. Chey's form held up the object, revealing the ring box.

"Wh-what?"

"Nifty little thing, isn't it? I hear the human world is an interesting place."

"When did you-"

"I might have to plan a visit," Chey said.

"Why?" I barely got out before my body failed me. I fell on the ground, knocked out.

"What's...with it?!"

…

"I d...know!"

"Why...it work…?"

"Maybe...with her."

People's voices filtered through my head in broken pieces. I couldn't make out the whole conversation but my head was hurting too much for me to care. My body felt sluggish but I could at least move around.

"Looks like she finally woke."

Looking up, two Inklings stood in front of me. One of which was Chey.

"What did you do to me?" I asked. We were in a large room with high windows shining down moonlight. It seemed I haven't been knocked out for too long.

"That's not what you should be worried about," said the Inkling next to Chey. She looked older than Chey but still young, maybe in her late twenties.

"What did you do to the ring? Why isn't it working?! I don't have time for setbacks so tell us now," she yelled, shaking the ring box toward me. She seemed to want to throw the box but held back.

"Give me it and I'll show you," I said.

Chey gave me a dirty look.

"Do you think we're stupid?"

"It's always worth a shot," I answered, getting up. My legs wobbled slightly but that didn't stop me. The girl took a step back, staring me down in...fear? Chey was unaffected.

"Tell us what you did to the ring," he demanded.

"Why?" I tried strolling around, gaining back the strength in my legs. Chey didn't seem to mind me walking around though the other Inkling was starting to get impatient. I mean I never been kidnapped before but I thought you would be tied up and thrown into a small room. Maybe this is their first kidnaping.

"Why did you kidnap me?" I asked, taking steps closer to them. "How did you figure out I'm human?"

"Stop!" yelled the girl. "We're asking the questions! So, sit back down and stay there!"

"How did you get the ring from me? When did you figure it out? What gave it away?" I kept firing questions at them, my nervousness not letting me stop. I couldn't lie. I was scared. Terrified. Who knows what they done to me when I was knocked out. They could easily have guns on them and shoot me any minute. I don't know what they are capable of. Trusting Chey's kind, helpful personality led me here. But asking questions is the only way I know how to gain back control.

"What ha-"

"SHUT UP!" yelled Chey.

I took a step back, surprised.

"If you're not going to tell us anything then you can stay in here until you feel like giving us information. I can wait."

The door slammed closed behind the both of them, leaving me alone in a giant building. I immediately tried the door but it was locked. The windows were too high up to climb out of. There wasn't much in here with me. A few boxes and some old furniture were what I saw. There was a small room that just contained a toilet which I was glad to have. I didn't want to use a bucket. Dust layered everything I saw. This building must have been abandoned.

I tried opening the boxes but there wasn't anything I could use to cut the tape that sealed each one. My nails weren't sharp enough to use as a knife.

Something was stuck in my throat. My legs became weak once again as I fell onto the ground. I wanted to go back home. Mom and Merlis were probably really worried about me. I should have just gone back when I could. Now who knows when I can.

My eyes widened.

Maybe never. I could be stuck here. I could die in a time period where I'm the only human alive.

"…Merlis."


	21. Chapter 21

Thx for the comments guys!

As soon as I read them, I got inspired to write more so you guys have something to look forward to later on.

Also...

I see you guys aren't very fond of cliff hangers... :]

* * *

Anna's POV

"Maybe now she'll want to talk."

Chey's voice woke me up. A day and a half already passed since I last heard his voice. Morning light shined down through the high windows. The door rattled, sending me in a flurry to get to cover. I was hungry and my body slow but I got behind something before the door opened. Both Inklings from yesterday walked in and scanned the room.

"Now come on out, Anna," Chey said, disappointment obvious.

I didn't.

"Don't do this. It's only going to turn out bad for you."

I stayed put, thinking of what to do. I couldn't overpower them so I was going to have to outsmart them. Staying here is only bad for me and I need to get food in my body. Survive, Anna.

"Come on. You can do this," I whispered to myself.

"Fine," I stated. I got up from behind the stack of boxes and faced my captures. "It's not like I could go against the both of you anyways."

Chey gave a small smirk. "Smart. So, do you feel like talking?"

I didn't at all. Eating is what I felt like doing. I looked over at the other Inkling. She clearly wanted to be somewhere else besides here.

"On one condition."

"And what's that?" said the lady Inkling.

"I'll tell you what you want to know only if you can beat me in a turf war."

"How do you know about turf wars?" the Inkling asked immediately.

I hesitated. Should I tell them that I know Merlis?

"Spyke told me about it," I lied.

Chey narrowed his eyes.

The hunger was definitely not helping me sell it.

"Of course not! Now tell u-" the lady started to say before she got cut off by Chey.

"She accepts," he says.

The lady freezes. "What! I am _not_ going to spend my time playing around with some human!" she exploded with anger.

"Yes, you are," Chey demanded.

"No. You can't boss me around. I've got a new teammate I have to train after Merlis up and disappeared to the human world!"

My brain stopped as soon as she said Merlis's name.

"Wait. You-" I tried to say but got drowned out.

"I'll get everything set up for this turf war-"

"No Chey! You might have an obsession with humans but I still have a tournament I need to win. If this is going to interfere with that then you can count me out. Winning is more important than some dead race that died out long ago."

"But don't you see Asdil? They aren't dead! There's one right in front of you and we can find the rest of them as soon as this ring starts working. There's a whole other world out there that we barely even know about."

"Then I'll leave you to it," Asdil said, storming out the room.

"Wait! Give me back the ring!" Chey shouted, running after her.

I instantly chased after them because they left the door wide open, not bothering with trying to keep me locked up. Their minds were so one tracked.

"Give me back the ring!"

They got out on the sidewalk where few Inklings were out and about.

Chey grabbed Asdil's arm, dragging her around.

"You really want this stupid ring back? Then go get it from her!"

Time seemed to slow as I watched the ring box fly through the air. My mind could barely register what Asdil said before I stuck out my hands to catch it..

"No!" Chey screamed out.

A body jumped in front of me, grabbing the ring box out of the air. There was a silence as the Inkling landed a foot away.

"What's going on here?" the new Inkling asked, looking down at the box. He was young, probably around Merlis's age but he had amazing reflexes.

"Papil! Nice catch! Now hand it over," Chey demanded, waiting for him to comply.

The new Inkling, Papal, inspected the box, slowly looking up at Chey. "No. Not until you tell me what's going on here. Both you and Asdil have been acting strange recently and I'm starting to think it might have to do something with this."

Chey's eyes furrowed. "Give me the box."

"Please," I said, deciding to interject, "it's my box that they stole from me so can I have it back?"

Papil stayed silent. He looked at me and back at my captors.

"Is this true Asdil?" he asked.

"Of course it's not hers. She's just trying to steal it from me," Chey interrupted.

"I'm not asking you Chey."

"Ya, its hers. So just give it back to her so I can be done with this stupid human thing. Why did I ever agree to do this…" Asdil stormed away, ejecting herself from the situation. No one bothered to stop her for they were all concentrated on the holder of the ring.

"Come on, Papil. Don't believe her. Trust me when I say it's mine." Chey tried convincing him once again but Papil didn't seem like he was buying it.

"Weren't you the one who always told me to trust in your team captain? 'If you can't trust your leader, then you are no longer a team that can win.' And what did Asdil mean by human?"

Annoyance was written all over Chey's face. His anger finally spilled over as he took action, charging straight at Papil. Luckily, Papil expected it and jumped to the side which left Chey stumbling. Inklings around us started to gather, thinking that a fight might soon break out.

"Please, I just want to go home," I pleaded, sticking out my hands.

Papil reached out for my shoulder, pulling me back as Chey charged again.

"You have no idea how big of an impact that box can make. That box is more important than your life could ever accumulate too. It will change the whole world," Chey said. "And you're just going to let all the potential disappear along with her if you give it back. SO HAND IT OVER!"

Papil grabbed my hand. "Run."

He tugged me along, booking us both the opposite direction. Chey commenced to chase us, weaving and dashing between the buildings but never being able to gain ground. He didn't get to chase us far before he lost his breath. My lungs prayed for air but Papil kept going, making sure Chey couldn't find us.

We finally stopped when he noticed I was struggling to keep running. "Thank you," I said between my panting, leaning against a brick wall. My stomach quietly growled in the background.

"You're not in the clear either. Now explain. Why were you with Chey and Asdil? I have a feeling you might be a big part in why they were acting weird."

"Give me a minute here. I haven't run the hard in a while. You make such sharp turns by the way."

Papil didn't seem flattered by the comment.

"Well anyway, they were the ones who kidnapped me. I just want to go home. Merlis and Mom must be beyond worried right now. If I don-"

"Wait. You know where Merlis is? Tell me. People have been looking all over for him after he vanished in that bright light," Papil said with a small sparkle in his eyes.

"How do you know Merlis?" I asked.

"He's my teammate. We played turf war together. I mean, I guess you can call us friends of sorts. Stop changing the subject. Where is Merlis? What did Asdil mean by human? Why in the world were you kidnapped? And why did Chey want this box so badly?"

"Oh. Well you see..."

Before I could continue, a cell phone ring tone went off. Papil reached into his pocket, taking out a squid shaped phone.

 _My phone!_

Just as I thought that, I let out a sigh of defeat. I left my phone in my room. But would it even work here?

"Ok I'm coming soon," Papil said into the phone before putting it away. "You're coming with me…?"

"Anna. My name's Anna."

"Papil, as you have heard. We're heading to my house and you can explain everything there."

I paused, not sure if I wanted to. He at least seemed rational. He's probably confused and just wanted answers. I could at least give him that.

"Fine, but could we hurry because everyone is worried about me. I don't want them thinking I'm dead or something. And...you wouldn't mind feeding me as well because I feel like I might pass out any moment."

"For someone I just met, you sure are bold for asking free food from me. Also, a little friendly Inkling to Inkling advice. Your skin feels dry to me. You might have to get that checked out."

"Ugh, well about that…"

* * *

Lol. I bet you though this chapter would have ended in a big cliff hanger.

Na, I'm not that mean. As far as I know, there aren't going to be any major cliff hangers any time soon.

Your welcome :3


	22. Chapter 22

Anna's POV

We eventually got to his home. It was an apartment but was located farther on the edge of the city so it wasn't bombarded with bustling streets and honking cars.

Stepping through the door, I instantly noticed the older decorations. There was an antique looking painting hanging above a fireplace with flowers littered around on tables. A wooden cabinet was filled with fancy dishes and figures. It was like I entered an elderly home because I did. An older Inkling sat in a rocking chair. I can't tell how old she was because I've never seen an elderly Inkling before but she'd seen her fair share of days. She had a book in hand, reading.

"I'm home," Papil said, walking up and giving to which I'm guessing is his grandma a kiss on the cheek.

My image of Papil instantly changed. He was no longer just a random Inkling that saved me but a family guy that loved his grandma.

"And who's this Papil? A new friend?" the older Inkling asked.

"Yes, Grandma. We're going to be in my room."

"Oh no, no, no. I must meet her and get to know her. It's not every day my grandson brings someone home."

"Grandma," he says in slight annoyance, "we have a lot of stuff to talk about and I want to get started."

"Nonsense. Now come, come. I want to hear all about you."

My stomach growled before anything else happened and Papil's grandma let out a laugh.

"Let's get you filled up first. I'll make sure that stomach of yours will never growl again."

I looked at Papil and expected him to refuse but he had a small smile on. I smiled too, glad to no longer have to feel like my stomach was eating itself.

The meal was a lot more meat heavy than plants but at least it filled me up faster.

"Now tell me. How did you meet my grandson of mine?"

"Ugh, well. He kinda came out of nowhere."

"Ha! That's just like him. Takes everyone by surprise."

"We met a couple minutes ago actually," I added.

His grandma quieted down, not expecting that.

"Oh, so you aren't…"

"Grandma! This is why I just wanted to talk alone."

It dawned on me that she probably thought we were a couple. I blushed slightly, embarrassed. It's not like he was a bad guy but I already...

"Then how in the world did you get my grandson to bring you here?"

"Mom called me over. She said she wanted my help when she comes home. She would be home in half an hour or so," Papil explained.

"Then why did you bring...?"

"Anna."

"...Anna along with you?" his grandma asked.

"She was going to explain to me why Asdil and Chey were acting weird and why they were so obsessed with humans and this box."

Papil's grandma's eyes stretched wide. Her face froze and she stared directly at me.

"Oh no. No. That can't be."

I sat quietly, confused.

"Come close, Anna. Let me get a good look at you."

I slowly got up from my seat, walking around the table.

Papil's grandma reached out for my hands, holding them in hers. Her eyes sparkled in recognition as she stared into mine.

"Holy Zapfish. You're human. But...Papil, tell me you have that box you mentioned earlier."

Papil's eyes were closed and he was rubbing his forehead. "Yes, I do but are you telling me Anna's a human? How in the world would you even know? Humans died out a long time ago."

"Well," I decided to say, "if you don't believe her, there are also my ears and hair."

I took my hat off, hair spilling down, and showed them my rounded ears. Papil's eyes were glued to them, not letting out a peep. He was captivated.

"You're...human."

I let out a soft laugh.

"Hand me the box," his grandma said.

Papil gave her the ring box without question. I watched as she handled it like it would break with the slightest force. She opened it, revealing the gold ring. Her hand covered her mouth.

"The ring…. But how? How long has it been since I've seen this? It's been too long."

"Wait," I said, even more confused. "You know what a ring is? Do you know what that ring can do? How _did_ you even know about humans?"

"One question at a time, honey. My mind isn't as fast as it used to be. Let's go back to the living room. This is going to be a long talk."

I started to follow her but Papil was still frozen in his spot, staring at me.

"Is it really that mind blowing for you?" I asked when I noticed his attention was on my ears.

"Anna. I just got told that a race long gone isn't extinct. I get to see one, talk to one, even touch one, and you expect me not to have my mind blown? This is crazy! You shouldn't exist! There is no way you can exist!"

It was like someone slapped my arm, not hard to bruise but enough to get your attention. It hurt to hear that but I guess my existence isn't something an Inkling would even dream about. Maybe I just expected everyone to take it as smoothly as Merlis did.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I didn't come from this time."

Papil stayed silent, trying to take it in.

"Time? Now you're telling me you're some kind of time traveler?"

"Come on, children. If you're going to make me wait any longer, I might forget what I was going to tell you," Papil's grandma said from the living room, stopping our conversation.

"Let's go hear what she has to say," I whispered to him, excited myself to find out.

"I feel like what she has to say is only going to make me more confused."

* * *

I'm sorry that this chapter is so short but I promise you the next chapter will be longer than this. v-v

I couldn't bring myself to stop a chapter in the middle of a conversation.


	23. Chapter 23

Backstory!

Dialog!

Words!

* * *

Anna's POV

We sat down on the couch and waited for her to start. She still had the ring box in her hands, holding it gently.

"It all started many years ago, when I was a young Inkling, just about your age. I'm not sure if you know an Inkling by the name Captain Cuttlefish but we were in the same splatoon during the Great War. Along with the rest of our splatoon, we took down waves of enemies like a squid swimming through ink. Our commander noticed this and we got chosen to go on a secret mission. We had to infiltrate one of the enemy's research camps and stop whatever they were doing. That's all that we were told. Their technology was always better than Inklings so this discovery was a big chance for us to push the tide of the war. We packed some of our essentials and brought our best gear, heading out to the location told to us."

"Grandma, you already told me this story. You would sneak in, destroy the base, and escape. That doesn't explain how you know about the ring," Papil complained, obviously wanting answers to all the questions in his head as fast as he could get them.

"Ah, patience Papil. There was a part of the story I always leave out. Now, we snuck in and weaved through the inner workings of the building until we found a giant open room. Machines were everywhere, all working on the same small object in the center; a golden ring."

If a meteor hit this building, I wouldn't have even noticed.

"We didn't know what it was but it couldn't have been good. With bombs and weapons at hand, we stormed the room. Ink flew everywhere as my teammates worked on distractions. I charged for the ring."

"So, if that ring and this ring are the same, does that mean…" I said.

"Yes. As soon as I touched the ring, everything turned white around me."

"Just like I did. Wait...so you went to the human world?!" I exclaimed, having so many new questions in my head.

"I sure did honey and it was one of the best mistakes I've made," Papil's grandma said, smiling while gently rubbing her finger against the box.

"Wait-" Papil tried saying.

"Where did you end up?"

"Somewhere in the middle of a forest. It was a big shock for me. I was so much younger back then. So much energy."

"Hey-"

"When did you figure out that touching the ring can bring you back?" I asked.

"Well that took a while. I met a human there. Hue was his name. He helped me out."

The name struck a chord in my head but I couldn't remember where I heard it before. I pushed it aside though, and focused back to the conversation.

"Oh my gosh! That's basically exactly what happened to Merlis!"

"Then d-"

"Hey!" Papil almost screamed. We fell silent, letting our conversation die out. His grandma was so easy to talk with. I didn't even notice that he was trying to get our attention. "Thank you. Now Grandma, are you telling me you actually seen this 'ring' box before?"

"It's the same one from my story, I'm sure of it," she said with a strong reassurance.

"Then we need to destroy it."

"No!" both his grandma and I yelled out.

"Ok, ok. We will ignore your past orders and leave it alone. Tell me why though."

"It's my only way back home. Without it, I'm stuck here and Merlis is stuck in the human world."

"So, Merlis is in the human world at this moment. Wow." Papil ran his hand along his hair. "I really stumbled across something troubling this time. And my grandma is intertwined into it too. Just how much more hectic can it get. Merlis got to the human world by touching this ring?" Papil grabbed the ring box from his grandma, weighing it in his hand.

"Yes. There would have been a bright white light shining around him when he touched it," I explained.

"Just like at the tournament…" Papil whispered, opening the box.

"Don't!" I yelled, lunging forward.

I was too late. Papil touched the ring...and nothing happened.

Expecting him to disappear, I crashed straight into his chest. We fell on the carpet together, groaning in pain from the impact.

"Are you two alright?"

"He didn't disappear…" I looked at Papil. "Why didn't you disappear?"

"Can you get off of me?"

I hurried and stood up, letting out a rushed apology.

"Anna, have you seen anyone else touch the ring and not get enveloped by the light?" Papil's grandma asked me.

"Well...actually both my mom and grandma touched it and didn't disappear. Wait, maybe that's what Chey and Asdil were talking about how it wasn't working."

"You catch on quick. Not everyone can touch the ring. Only the owner of the ring can deem who can and can't use its power. That's how Hue and I saw it at least."

"Would that make you the owner then since you had it first?" I asked.

"I was the owner but that time has long past. I had left the ring with Hue, sure that the no one from here could get it. He would protect it."

Papil's grandma had a sad smile on her face, looking like she was remembering something from the past.

"If you don't mind me asking, and I could be completely wrong here, but did you...fall in love with Hue?"

There was a soft silence hanging in the air but I could tell from her eased smile and longing eyes that she did.

"Why didn't you stay?" I quietly asked.

"He had someone else. Besides, he had his world and I had mine. Anyways," she said, now back to her cheerful grandmotherly voice, "I'm sure both of us turned out happy in the end."

"There's one thing I'm confused about," Papil said, "if you left the ring in the human world last, how did Merlis end up having it here in Inkopolis?"

It was a good question. How did it get back to Inkopolis?

"From what I remember, the ring can only take one human or Inkling at a time," his grandma said.

"So, that means that there has to be a human still in this world that brought the ring over. That can't be possible though because they would be eventually caught and every Inkling would go wild," Papil said.

"Not necessarily. You didn't suspect me of being a human at all. You just past off my dry skin as something to go get checked out," I contradicted him.

"Well, what about your ears and hair?"

"The human could make a fake pair that looks just like yours and nobody would take a second glance. They could wear hats that covered their hair."

"Ok fine, maybe they could survive here."

"Children, children quiet down. I'm more curious about how the ownership of the ring works," Papil's grandma said. I stopped and thought about it.

"Maybe the ownership is something that's exchangeable. Like when you gave the ring to Hue to keep in the human world, he became the new owner."

Hue. Why was that name so familiar? Hue…Hue.

"I remember! Hue is my grandpa!" I exclaimed, excited about my discovery. "I just never called him that so it didn't register at first."

Papil's grandma beamed with excitement. If she could have jumped from her rocking chair, I'm sure she would have.

"You're Hue's granddaughter…" Tears rolled down her face as she let out a giant smile. "It's been so long. I didn't think I would ever see anything connected to him and here you are, his granddaughter. Is he doing well? Oh, I do hope he's ok."

The pure look of joy on her face made my guilt run deep. It made me want to take back what I said and never have mentioned Hue because when I told her he had passed years ago, the look of sadness broke my heart into pieces.

"So," Papil said after a few minutes of hugs and comfort, "I just thought of this but you said that only one person can use the ring at a time."

"Yes I did," his grandma said.

"Then how did you end up in Inkopolis and leave the ring with the human? Cause the ring started here, you transported to the human world, left the ring, but then how did you get back? It's impossible."

"Ah, so smart Papil. So smart." His grandma reached for her neck, pulling out a small necklace hidden underneath her clothes. It was a small crystal hanging from a thin metal chain. "By some miracle, this necklace had some of the ring's power infused into it but it was a one time use. I've had my fair share of adventures when I was younger too. After I used it, it just became a regular piece of jewelry."

"Wow. I'd love to hear the story behind that," I said, fascinated that something Merlis and I are going though happened before.

"Maybe another time. Didn't you say you wanted to leave as soon as you could? I'm sure your family is worried about you."

I was so focused on everything new I was learning, I almost forgot that I was in Inkopolis and not just visiting some friends.

"Yes. I really should go home. Thank you for everything. I've learned so much here that I feel like I'm not going remember everything. I'll make sure to visit you again when I come back," I said. I got up off the couch, fixing my dress. My clothes were still with Spyke but I can just pick them up some other time. I still have so much left to explore.

"Please be safe," Papil's grandma said. "Keep the ring close. I'd love for you to come back and we can talk till the sun goes down."

"You better come back because I still have a bunch of questions for you," Papil told me, standing next to me.

I gave a small laugh.

"I'm sure your grandma can answer at least some of those for you."

Papil handed me the box and I opened it. It was a plain golden ring but it has seen so many adventures and still holds many mysteries.

"Bye," I said to both of them.

Touching the ring, a bright white light enveloped me.


	24. Chapter 24

Merlis's POV

The sun was about to set when I stopped by the park. The summer heat had cooled down to a comfortable walking temperature with the upcoming night. There wasn't anyone there but me. It didn't look right not seeing little kids running around and laughing. I sat on the swing, remembering how Anna had retaught me how to swing. It happened only a few days ago.

All I did was fear the worst when she didn't return after a day. After two days, the only thought in my head was that she's been captured. She couldn't have survived in Inkopolis, one of the busiest cities, and not get pointed out as strange.

The lights in the park flickered on, signaling that it was about time for me to head back to Anna's house. I didn't want to though because when I woke up the next day, it shrank the chances of her coming back. My stomach knotted thinking that I did this to her. If she hadn't touched the ring, she wouldn't be in some strange world, all alone and probably getting poked with needles and science tools. But I couldn't think like that. There must be a reason she hasn't come back yet. She had to be safe. She must have found some place and hid away from everyone. She couldn't be gone.

A bright light caused me to shield my eyes, almost sending me falling out of the swing. In the back of my mind, something was telling me to run towards it but my instincts held me back. I heard some mumbling and a figure stood up off the ground.

"Ugh, my head. At least I didn't pass out," a female's voice said to herself.

I lowered my arm, catching sight of Anna.

 _Thump thump_.

My legs moved on their own as I came charging towards her, eyes wide and mouth open. I barely caught her surprised look before enveloping her in my arms. We almost fell over together, stumbling slightly, but we still stood. My head lowered to her shoulder, taking a deep breath. The smell of Inkopolis clung to her but her familiar wooden scent still lingered. Her body was first rigid but softened as seconds passed by.

"You're safe," I said, half wanting her to confirm it with her own voice.

"Sorry," she said, lowering her voice. Her arms wrapped around me, rubbing up and down my spine. This was really her. She came back.

I eventually let her go, feeling like I might have been hugging her too long.

"Don't apologize. I'm just glad you're back home safely."

Anna gave a small smile, almost like she noticed something that I didn't.

When I didn't say anything, she laughed.

"What?"

"Just something you said. I wonder when you will notice it. Now come on, I'm sure my mom is beyond worried if you hugged me at first sight. I have a lot to tell you."

She started to walk off, taking a look behind her when she noticed me not following.

I stood there, having a small blush that tinted my cheeks.

I said home.

She gave a giant smile, one that I didn't know until now that I missed.

…

Anna definitely got her fair share of hugs today. It was like her mom didn't want to let her go when she came home. Tears crept into both their eyes when they did.

While her mom shot off questions, I started to think about what I wanted to ask. Anna's mom's questions were mostly about her wellbeing and while I was relieved to hear she wasn't hurt, I wanted to know why she didn't come home as soon as she got there.

"Mom, mom. It's starting to get late and you just look dead tired. How about you get some rest and we can talk about it in the morning?" Anna said, slowly leading her mom towards the bedrooms.

"If you're sure you're fine."

"I'm sure, Mom. Get some sleep."

She walked up the staircase slowly, looking like she wanted to turn around and give Anna another hug. I heard a door shut and it was just Anna and I left in the living room.

I too was starting to long for the comfort of my new bed but Anna looked like she could go run a marathon.

"So, where do you want to start?" I asked, letting a yawn I was trying to hide escape.

"How about tomorrow Merlis," she said with a kind smile. "You look even more tired than my mom and she's my _mom_."

I gave another yawn, not bothered to try and hide it.

"Ok."

We both made our way up the stairs. My room was across from hers and for some reason I was glad for that.

"Night, Merlis."

"Good night, Anna," I told her.

I shut the guest bedroom door, using the small glow coming off me as my light source. Shuffling to put on the pair of pajamas I was given, I plopped on the bed. My mouth was grinning.

It felt like I only slept for a few seconds when I heard someone falling down, letting out a yell. I jumped out of bed, rushing over to Anna's room. When I opened her door, I wasn't expecting to see her lying on the floor next to the bed with a small grin.

"Sorry," she quietly said.

I lowered my head, taking a breath.

"I kind of fell. Was a few inches off," Anna explained.

My feet brought me over to her, lending her my arm. "Scared me there. For a second, I thought you disappeared again. You know, it was hard to convey to your mom that you didn't just vanish and never were going to return."

"What do you mean?" she asked me.

"When you left, I suddenly couldn't understand anything she was saying. And because we can understand each other now, I'm pretty sure it has to do with the ring. Because do you speak Inkling?"

"No, English."

"See?"

Anna used my arm and pulled herself up, dusting off her butt.

"That is strange. Maybe the ring has some kind of range? Or does it just need to be in this time period to work? Still so many questions," she said.

My body started to fail me as I felt my eyes start to drop. I really was tired.

"Merlis?"

I felt myself falling but never registered the landing. My body didn't feel right. Maybe I was in squid form? I couldn't tell. Sleep was all I wanted.

* * *

Ok, so I want to ask you guys if I should rewrite the beginning chapters/combine some to make it better and more appealing to new readers or not?

Thanks a bunch.

~Meeshka


	25. Chapter 25

Anna's POV

He weighed about as much as a full-grown cat. I almost let him slip from my grip because I forgot how slick his skin was. I also noticed that his clothes disappeared but according to memory, they appear again when he was in Inkling form. If they didn't, we definitely were going to having to create some rules.

I could feel him breath in my arms.

Would it be creepy if I just poked him for a little bit? It's still so strange how he can shift between his two forms. Science would have so many problems with his existence.

My heart and my mind were having a battle about whether I could keep him in my room or take him back to his but I knew he wasn't some kind of pet. He was still an Inkling and fundamentally human too.

The lights were off in his room but thankfully I didn't have to worry about that because Merlis emitted a light blue glow. Placing him on top of the bed, I didn't bother putting a blanket over him in case I somehow suffocated him. I don't know enough about squids and his transformation to risk it.

Crickets chirped through the night as I stared out the window. The moon shined down and I still didn't feel sleepy. My sleep pattern was messed up but I'd get used to it again.

I returned to my room, picking up and placing my new plush on the bed. Sitting at my desk, I fished out some paper and a pencil. Writing down everything would help me remember it for tomorrow. After I've finished writing every detail I could remember, I let my hand doodle. They were small, slow movements but it relaxed me. A picture of a squid, small and giant, then an Inkling. There was a ring and a charger. Just anything that appeared in my head I put on paper. I drew a chibi version of Merlis then one of me.

I stopped, looking at what I drew. My hand twitched, drawing a heart between the both of us. It was erased just a second later.

"You're such a little kid, Anna," I whispered to myself, stuffing the paper between my messy stack of them. So instead of drawing, I tried reading but I just couldn't get sucked into the story. I tried lying in bed, hoping my body would recognize that it was time to sleep. But of course it wouldn't work because I woke up an hour or two ago. I was wide awake.

My fingers fiddled with my dress, reminding me that I should probably change...and take a bath.

Stepping in the shower, it felt so good to feel the hot water trickle down my body. All the grease and dirt washed away and I was left feeling new. Wrapping my hair in a towel, I tossed a fluffy robe on and headed to the living room, hoping the tv might distract me. Guided by the light from the moon, I surfed the channels, nothing catching my attention.

Drops of water slowly traveled down my neck as I sat there in silence, seeming like I had all the time in the world.

The window bench invited me over so I sat there, staring at the moon. It was the same one at Inkopolis, showing that sad smile. It was faded looking but at the same time, it has crisp borders reminding me of two different art styles.

Now, drawing was the only thing on my mind. I rushed to my room and grabbed my sketchbook and pencil, making sure not to make much noise. The moon was still there when I came back, like I'm sure it always will. Running the pencil across the page, I started to draw the moon. It was small because I wanted something else to be the main focus but I took care to make it as detailed as I could. My hands drew through the night until I fell asleep.

Merlis's POV

Anna was sleeping on the window bench with a sketchbook in her lap when I found her. After I woke up, I got changed and cleaned up, forgetting all about her return. It just suddenly popped into my head. But when I didn't see her in her room, I thought I just made her up. A figment my imagination made up to cope. I'd gotten so used to her presence.

Walking up to her, I saw that her drawing was me and her, sitting on the grass while looking up at the moon.

Slowly taking the sketchbook from her, I added my own details.

"Mmmh," Anna mumbled.

I quickly shut the sketchbook.

"Morning, Anna."

"Ugh, my head hurts," she said in a groggy voice. "I definitely slept for too long. What time is it?"

"Around eight o'clock," I told her.

"Jeez. That's like...twelve hours of sleep. Ugh."

I got out of her way as she stood up, having a slight sway in her step. When she almost fell, I shot out my hands for her to grab onto. She did.

"Sorry. I'm not used to sleeping for so long. I just need some fresh air and cold water," she said, walking to the back door with more steady steps. The door slid open with ease and Anna stretched as far as she could. Her shirt rose up, revealing a sliver of her stomach.

"Uh…" came out of my mouth.

But the sight was gone as soon as it came.

Anna walked back in, hair a mess and eyes still droopy.

"Merlis, can you do me a favor?"

"Of course," I immediately answered.

"Can you pour me a glass of cold water? Thanks a bunch. I'm going to freshen up while you do that."

When she came back, a small puddle already formed around the base of the glass cup. I watched her gulp it down and let out a satisfied sigh.

"Cereal?" I asked her.

"Oh my gosh. Yes, please. You're a lifesaver, Merlis."

We sat at the table, eating our bowls of cereal. I don't know why but the taste was so much more. When I would sit here with Anna's mom, Mia as she keeps trying to tell me, it tasted bland. Now it was like it had crunch and taste.

I shook my head.

"Anna. What happened when you got to Inkopolis?"

Anna's eyes lit up. "Ooh, I wrote everything down on a piece of paper. I'm going to go get it."

"No, it's ok. Just tell me what you can remember."

That's when I got to hear everything. I sat there, listening to her spilling out everything that happened those few days. From her encounter with Spyke to meeting Papil's grandmother, she told me all the details she could. My mind felt like it was overloading, filling with so many facts and questions about the ring. I never would have thought that the ring was a creation of the Octolings.

"And it's so cool that what happened to Papil's grandmother is basically what happened to you! I guess that means that you're not the first Inkling in the human world."

I tapped my fingers along the table.

"I mean I know that Octolings had more advanced technology than Inklings but to create something that would be able to time travel is…"

"Wait, what are Octolings?" Anna asked me.

"I thought you would know by now. You've been talking about them this whole time."

"Well, Papil's grandma just kept saying enemy. She never actually said Octoling. I think you said something about them being your enemy when I first met you, too."

"Ya, I remember that. Remember the Great War I told you about? It was Inklings fighting against the Octolings. Squids against Octopi. Tension was high between us two races," I said, trying to remember all the history about the war.

"What about now?"

That caught me off guard.

"Huh?"

"Are tensions still high against you guys?" Anna restated.

"Yes, but it's not as bad as during the war," I told her. "They have their side and we have ours. It's just that some Inklings are all about forgetting the past and having peace and others completely want nothing to do with them."

There was a silence between us after I finished talking.

"What about you?"

I heard a door open upstairs, probably Anna's mom. I listened, hearing every step she took as she walked towards us. I knew she was going to ask that question.

"I'm in between, I guess. Of course I want peace but I can't just forget everything the Octolings have done. Their hands aren't clean. The Inklings' aren't either but…"

"Good morning," said Anna's mom, walking into the kitchen with Meka slowly following behind in slow, sleepy steps.

"Morning, Mom," Anna lazily said. Anna's mom placed a kiss on her forehead, slightly ruffling her hair.

"Good morning An- Mia," I fumbled, feeling weird calling her by her name. Is that normal?

"Good morning, Merlis. I see you guys are already catching up. Anna?"

Anna pushed her empty bowl away from her, enjoying one last spoonful of cereal.

"Yes, Mom?" she asked.

"Are you sure you are ok?"

"I'm fine, Mom. I couldn't be any better."

"No broken bones?"

"Nope."

"Any kind of injury?"

"None."

"Traumatic experience?"

"Not really."

Anna's mom gave a small squint.

"It's was more of an experience than traumatic. Almost like a sudden vacation. I'm fine, Mom."

"Then that's all I want to hear. If you say you're ok, then I'll trust you. I'll talk to you later Anna. I'm going to drop off Meka and then head to the art gallery. Just try not to suddenly disappear on me, again."

"Ok. Bye Mom! I promise I won't suddenly disappear again."

Anna and I sat still, waiting for her mom to leave out the front door. When we heard the click of the lock, I asked her, "I would think being kidnapped would be more traumatic."

Anna placed both our bowls into the sink, letting out a tired yawn. "Probably. But I'm trying to think of it less like a kidnapping and more like an unexpected sleepover," she said.

"Unexpected sleepover…" I gave her disbelieving look.

"What? It kind of was. Just that I was by myself...and hungry."

It's probably better that she thinks that way. Rather that then an actual traumatic experience. Would humans cope with traumatic experience just like Inklings? Why wouldn't they I guess.

"Well, anything else you want to know about my trip?" Anna asked me, falling onto the couch.

"You said your grandfather went to the Inkling world. Would your grandmother know anything about that?"

Anna jumped up. "I~ haven't thought of that. Wanna go ask her?"

I shifted my feet, running my hand through my hair.

"Actually no. It's just something I thought of. The day just started and I learned all this new stuff. I feel like if we go to ask her, I'll just be overloaded with everything. Can we just give me at least a day or two to think all this information over?"

"Ya sure," Anna said, sitting back down. "It's just that I got all excited."

"Of course. You should be. We're getting closer and closer to figuring out what the ring is and does. It's just that you seem so much more excited about it than I am."

"Merlis. It's a ring that can time travel. Time travel!"

I ran both my hand through my hair.

"Yes, it can time travel and it was made by the Octarians and I'm not the first one to use it and your family is a part of it and it can translate our languages. It's so much, Anna. I feel like we're on the edge of something big and as soon as we fall off that edge, nothing will be the same. All I want is to enjoy these peaceful moments with you while they last, not rush into the first signs of change we see. Can we do that?"

I let out a slow sigh, feeling a weight lift off my chest. There, I got what I was thinking out. Now it's up to Anna to take it how she will.

When I didn't hear anything from her, I looked up. Her cheeks were tinted slightly pink as she caught my eyesight.

"Uh...sure. I get it. So, what do you want to do? Have another ink war? Explore around?"

"I was wondering if I could get that book about human anatomy you told me you would get a while ago. I've started to get curious about you guys."

I couldn't tell if her cheeks were getting brighter or it was a trick my eyes were playing on me but either way, Anna replied, "Ya. We can head to the library. It'll be quiet and a good chance for both of us to think about things."

There seemed to be a second meaning behind those words but I couldn't figure it out.


	26. Chapter 26

Anna's POV

The library was definitely quiet. Probably because we were the only ones there. I should have expected that because very few people would spend their free time lurking in a library.

An old lady, the librarian, walked up to us and asked if we needed any help. Merlis asked where the human anatomy section was and she led him away. I was left to wonder around the shelves, admiring how well kept it was.

It wasn't a large library. Everything was on one floor so I could see Merlis through the gaps between the shelves and the top of the books. Once he got settled in, the librarian left him alone to browse the section. He reached up and pulled out a white book. And that was all that was left for me to see. His back was towards me so catching a glimpse of his face when he read about the female body wouldn't happen.

Heat prickled my face as I raised my hand to cover my eyes. I was embarrassed. Why though? Everyone already knows how the female body looks like so why am I getting so red at the thought of Merlis knowing? He's going to have to know if he's going to stay any longer in the human world. That means he's also going to need to know about...that.

I slid onto the floor, ducking my head into my lap.

 _Darn it, Anna! Stop thinking like that!_

There wasn't a mirror nearby but I knew that my cheeks were ablaze. I can feel the heat radiating through my hands. All of this because Merlis, a seventeen year old male, doesn't know something every kid finds out about in middle school. Getting up, I dragged myself to find the bathroom and cool off.

It wasn't hard to find. The mirror showed exactly what I imagined. A pervy girl with tomato cheeks.

I slapped myself.

 _Anna. He's your friend. Yes, he's kind, smart, cute, not to mention single, and all around one of the best guys you've met but that doesn't mean he wants to do romantic things. For all you know, he could be secretly into guys._

I walked out of the bathroom a couple minutes later, cooled off and somewhat back to normal. When I drew my attention to the human anatomy section, Merlis wasn't there.

Maybe he went outside?

I decided to ask the librarian. She pointed outside, like I suspected, saying that he wanted to sit outside.

Walking out, I wasn't expecting to see Merlis crouched down and covering his head.

"Merlis? Are you ok?" I asked, worried something was wrong.

He raised his head once he heard my voice, showing me a shade of red brighter than a burning flame. It covered his whole face, traveling all the way up to his ears.

His mouth was like a goldfish. "Humans...babies...uuh," he half mumbled to me with a voice of shock and embarrassment. He drew his gaze right into my eyes. "Why!? That's so…"

He read about human sex. My cheeks went ablaze.

"...intimate. Do you humans really put-"

"Merlis! Yes. That's how it works. Now you know how babies are made," I quickly spit out.

His eyes travel across my body, making me feel naked and exposed. I wanted to turn around and hide.

"So 'into your pants' means… they want...to…"

"Ya...that. It's not always to...make babies. Most times it's just for…" I took a slow breath, "enjoyment and pleasure."

"How can that be enjoyable!? Have you-"

"No!" I felt on fire. "Never! It's just what everyone says it's like. They say, omg I can't believe I'm having his conversation. It will hurt at first then it'll feel good. I don't know! Why do you want to know!?" My voice was increasing in volume the longer I talked. I never thought I could be more embarrassed. "Don't ask me! The farthest I've gone was a kiss. Yes, there was some inappropriate touching from Jake but I would always force him to stop. Why am I even telling you this!?"

I slid down the wall, wanting nothing more than to disappear from existence. Everything just slipped from my mouth and I couldn't stop it.

We sat in silence, letting our cheeks return to their somewhat regular color. From time to time, I could feel him looking over at me. I tried not to look back.

"Sorry. This must have been really embarrassing for you," Merlis said.

"You think?" I said back to him, with a little bit too much snark.

"Would you like to hear about...Inklin-"

"No, Merlis. I think this is enough embarrassment for today. I'm sure even you don't want to talk about that."

I took a deep breath, ready to move onto another topic. I couldn't get mad at him for being curious. I also want to know more about Inklings just.

"Anna, if it makes you feel better, I haven't...kissed anyone before either," Merlis slowly told me, causing me to look over at him. He stared at me from his elbow, like a hunter poking out from the grass. Funny enough, he was anything but a hunter right now. He looked so timid and embarrassed.

I let out a small laugh.

"Do you want to change that?" Those words left my lips before I could recognize what I just implied. I brought my hands up to my lips and wished that I could just keep them closed forever. Now there was no way that he can't figure out that I liked him. I basically just told him. My head slid into my legs to the point where my neck started to hurt. Maybe snapping my neck wasn't a bad idea.

"Yes," came a small whisper. So quiet, like a dandelion in the wind that I could have just thought it up. I knew I didn't though when Merlis shifted closer to me, only a few centimeters between us.

I lifted my head. I couldn't lie that I've imagined kissing him. In each one, I was the one who made the first move. Merlis didn't seem like the type too. It's just that I didn't think it would happen, could happen.

He turned his head, taking only a second to look into my eyes for any kind of resistance before I felt the warmth spiral into me. His lips were so much softer than I thought possible. Clouds might be a good way to describe them. It made me wonder how they would feel in the dead of winter when the cold dried them stiff. The taste of fruits slipped into my mouth, creating a hunger deep in my stomach that couldn't be appeased. But it disappeared as soon as the taste became stronger. Merlis had pulled away, leaning his head back against the wall. His lips were somewhat puckered out, which I'm sure mine were too.

I smiled a giddy smile.

"Hey, that's cheating," I said.

"You're the one who said all's fair in love and war."

Merlis's POV

For the rest of the day, there really was nothing else my mind could focus on than Anna. It seemed like the same thing for her. We would catch each other stealing glances, looking away in embarrassment.

I still can't believe I _kissed_ her.

It just happened. Her cheeks were a pretty crimson red against her tan skin. Something in the back of my head just told me to go for it. There was nothing stopping me.

"Do you, Merlis?" Anna asked me.

I zoned back in to see Anna waving a hand in front of my face. My mind went blank. What were we talking about?

"Do I what?"

"A phone. Do you have a phone?" Anna asked, rolling her eyes in playfulness. She knew I wasn't paying attention.

"Not with me. I usually leave it at my apartment," I answered her.

"Then what's in your pocket?"

I fished my hand in my pocket only to pull out my phone.

"Huh. I don't remember putting it there."

"That's so cute!"

Anna swiped the phone from my hand.

"It looks like a squid! That's too adorable! I want one."

She clicked open to the lock screen, showing an old picture of Papil and I.

"It's you and Papil! Wow, you guys look younger."

"That was a long time ago."

"What's you p- never mind. You should put a password on your phone. Never know when it'll get stolen."

I didn't disagree as I watched her shuffle through the minimal apps I had.

"Not much here. Wait, is that app called Squidbook?"

Anna point to the app I probably used most often.

"Ya. It's a book app. I read...sometimes. Maybe a lot."

Anna gave a little stab to the side of my stomach.

"Nerd."

"Says the artist."

"True, True. Hey! Let's take a picture together!"

Anna opened the camera app on the phone and held it out. I bent down slightly, putting my head next to hers.

Click

"Now be angry."

I raised my eyebrows but did it nonetheless.

Click

"Now silly face."

I crossed my eyes and puckered my lips.

Click

"Omg what kind of face is that?" Anna asked.

"What? You said funny and your chuckling right now so what's the problem?"

Anna gave me back my phone but pulled out hers instead. It looked similar to mine but was just a plain rectangle.

"Let's take a few on mine. Do the silly one. I want to keep that one."

"Fine cause you asked."

We took a few more photos, even one of me as a squid.

"Ok, Ok. Last one."

I looked up at the camera, closing my eyes and putting on a cheesy smile. What I didn't expect was a jab to the side of my stomach and a clicking sound right after.

I opened my eyes to catch Anna running down the sidewalk.

"Get back here!" I yelled playfully as I sprinted after her. I had to see how that photo turned out. Once Anna rounded the corner, I heard her yell, "Hurry up, slowpoke!"

I smirked. Now this was a competition.

Once I rounded the corner myself, my eyes locked on to Anna. Her hair was wildly swinging side to side as she sprinted with all she got. An easy target.

I stopped, bent down into a sprinting position, and took a deep breath. In the blink of an eye, I shot off. Her figure grew closer with each step. The wind whooshed past me but my ears were focused on the sound of Anna's breathing. One more step then I could see the individual strands of her hair. I was almost neck and neck with her when she turned her head to me, staring wide eyed. Then I overtook her, running past buildings and people. The wind felt nice against my skin.

"Watch out!" Anna yelled.

My shoes skidded against the concrete as I braced myself for an impact. By the time I already made a full stop, Anna was a good couple yards ahead of me. She was laughing and trying to say something at the same time but I couldn't make it out.

"Dirty trick," I whispered beneath my breath, sprinting after her again.


	27. Chapter 27

Merlis's POV

I ran, enjoying the adrenaline building up in my body. Anna took a right turn into an adjacent street and I followed suit a few moments later. My eyes searched the new surroundings but Anna was nowhere to be found.

"Anna?" I called out.

 _There was no way she could have out run me._

Not hearing a response, I slowed down until I stood in front of a house. It looked like one where someone wealthy would live. Its door was open.

"Anna?" I called out again, starting to worry.

 _Maybe she was hiding somewhere._

There was a slight muffle cry before I heard Anna scream out. My pupils instantly dilated as I charged through the open door, creating a large bang when it hit the wall.

"Let me go, Jack!" Anna yelled from somewhere upstairs.

"Just you wait. I'm going to make scream my name until your voice gives out. If you stop fighting me, I can make sure it will feel good for you too," said Jack.

I skipped up the stairs in pairs of three as I swung open a wooden door to find a bedroom.

Jack had Anna in a tight grip hold, limiting her movements. She struggled, kicking and elbowing Jack as hard as she could but she got the wind knocked out of her when he threw her against the bed.

I didn't even have time to see what Jack's expression was before I tackled him, sending both of us sliding across the room. I punched his face with more force than I thought I could.

A sudden pain exploded on my left side as Jack kicked me off him.

"Look whose knight in shining armor appeared. Did you already give your virginity to this guy? I bet you have sex with him every single moment you get, you slut."

My fist came slamming down on his face, sending drops of blood flying to the floor but I ignored it. I didn't give him time to even blink before another punch swung into his gut.

Jack buckled down onto his knees as all I felt were my fists flying into his body. Just when I was about to punch his face again, he shot out his foot and swept it under mine. I came falling down and hit my head against the floor.

"Jack! That's too far!" I heard Anna yell out.

I painfully raised my head and saw what Anna meant. Jack held a small knife in his hand with an angry snarl on his face.

"Oh Anna. I think this is just what your knight here needs," Jack said with hatred. His steps were slightly wobbled and his eyes kept blinking every second but that could make him all the more dangerous.

"Anna!" I yelled without breaking my sights with Jack. "Get away from here!"

"But-"

"NOW!"

I heard shuffling behind me and the sound of footsteps down the staircase as Jack let out a huddled breath.

"And here I thought she would get a good show."

I crunched down slightly, tensing my muscles. "You're crazy."

"I wouldn't say crazy...more like determined. Every girl I've dated I had my way with. That's not going to change."

He let out a small hiccup and lashed out, forcing me to dodge to the right. Stumbling, spots of blood landed on the carpet below him from his bloody nose. What caught my attention was the deep red color. My eyes widened. Human blood was red.

A sudden burning pain burst from my arm. Jack's knife had left a long cut running down my arm. Instinct told me to cover the cut with my body but Jack lunches out against, stopping me from even trying.

Feeling my blood boil under my skin, I launched back my counter attack.

Anna's POV

Merlis came out of the Jack's house, clutching his left arm.

"Merlis!" I rushed over to him, clutching his shoulders. "Are you ok? What happened to Jack?"

Merlis looked up at me. His eyes seemed different. They looked like they hardened and a deep motivation lurked in their depths.

"Jack's unconscious with a couple cuts to remember me by and my arms bleeding. But the most important thing is that you're safe. So, let's get out of this area before he wakes up."

"Ok. Ok, Merlis," I said, feeling my cheeks warm.

We got back to my house safely. Merlis found a seat on the couch as I rushed to get the first aid kit from the bathroom. It's been so long since I had to get it out that I almost forgot where it was.

Once back in the living room, Merlis kept his eyes trained on me as I opened the bottle of rubbing alcohol. Tenderly, I removed his arm from the wound and my hands stilled. His blood was clear. "Whoa," was all I got out of my mouth.

"Says the person with red blood," Merlis said.

"What's so weird about red blood? I'd say having clear blood is stranger."

"Blood shouldn't have any color. How in the world is it red anyways?" Merlis asked.

"Something about oxygen and iron in the blood. I don't exactly remember. But if your blood is clear, why do you blush red?"

"Something about how our hair can change color. I didn't exactly pay attention in class."

"Well, this might sting a little," I said, bringing my attention back to his injury.

Dabbing the alcohol soaked cotton ball on his cut, I instantly felt bad. Merlis recoiled and hissed in pain.

"Sorry, but I need to get this done so it doesn't get infected. Please put up with it for a little bit more."

He nodded his head in obedience and let me continue. As soon as I finished with the alcohol, I wiped away any dried blood and put a band aid on. It was so weird to not see red on the cotton balls and instead a clear liquid.

"There you go," I assured him.

"Thank you, Anna."

"Don't worry about it. Just try not to get attacked by a knife again," I said, half saying it for comedic effect.

"That all depends if you're going to get hurt by it."

I brought my eyes up to his face, millions of thoughts running through my head. I watched him gaze at his cut arm, slowly putting his hands into fists. He's become much more… protective than before.

"Anna. That Jack guy… I don't think he was right in the head. Stay away from him," Merlis cautioned.

"He was drunk. His breath reeked with it. But I won't argue that he isn't right in the head. Well, I'm going to go put all this up. Be right back," I told him. Once I came back, we sat on the couch together. Neither of us we're sure what to do next so it gave me time to think. This week was full of lots of first for me. First time I almost got raped, first time I got kissed by a guy that doesn't only want to sleep with me, first time I've been kidnapped, first time I've time traveled, first time I've met an Inkling, and first time I've truly fell in love. That is a lot of first...

"Merlis?"

"Yes, Anna?"

A comfortable silence surrounded us.

"Do you like me?"

I felt Merlis shift on the couch but I didn't dare to look in his direction.

"I would think kissing you would be proof enough."

The corners of my lips twisted up as I gathered some courage to say what I was about to say.

"You might have to prove it to me again."

Merlis's head landed on his legs, returning to his embarrassed side that I grew to love. He took a slow, deep breath.

"My gosh, Anna. You're something else," he whispered in an embarrassed tone.

"Is that a no?"

He zipped up, drawing towards me until our lips touched once again. This time, the taste of fruits instantly appeared. It mixed into my mouth and dissolved like cotton candy from a summer carnival. A hit of peach seeped in before we let go, letting me take in a quick breath.

"Wow-" I barely got to say before Merlis went in again. My eyes went wide but they slowly closed when he didn't stop. His hands found their place on my cheeks, slowly making their way to my neck. They felt cold as they traveled but I couldn't get enough of it. The taste of peach returned until it turned into a crisp apple, refreshing the taste buds in my mouth. I wanted more.

More.

More!

Merlis tore away. He abruptly stood up and exited through the back door, leaving me breathless on the couch.

Merlis's POV

I slid down a tree and wanted nothing more than to disappear in a puddle of ink.

"What did I just do…" I muttered to myself, slightly banging the back of my head against the tree. Anna's lips were so soft. Softer than anything I've ever felt. It doesn't help that I can barely control myself when she teases me like that. It baffles me that any guy can't commit to her.

" _You might have to prove it to me again."_

How could I not comply to her request? My heart thumped in my chest. Anna liked me and I liked her. I liked Anna. Anna, a human being. A human being that can die from the smallest of things.

…

I must make sure she doesn't get hurt.

"Merlis?"

I heard Anna call my name from somewhere in the woods. Getting up, I wandered towards her voice.

"I'm over here, Anna."

Anna turned around, smiling when she saw me. "Was my kiss so bad that you had to run away?" she asked playfully. Her giddiness was new to me but I didn't dislike it. What else does she get this giddy about?

I ran my hand along my hair. "No. It's just I don't think I have enough self control for this kind of relationship."

Anna's face fell, her body's movement slowing down. "Does that mean...you don't want us to be a couple?"

"NO! No! I want us to be one! It's just that you're going to have to stop teasing me like you do because I'm not confident I can control myself," I admitted. "This is going to be my first relationship Anna and I don't want to mess it up with you."

"Merlis. Just by being you, you're already ten times better than anyone else I've been with. But I can't promise you about the teasing thing. I think your embarrassed side is my favorite version of you."

"That can be dangerous for you," I said, watching what Anna's reaction was. She didn't seem to catch on to what I said because she just kept looking at me. A split second later, she exploded.

"What do you mean by dangerous?" she timidly asked, tugging on her hair with red all the way across her face. Anna's embarrassed side was cute but I'd have to say there's another side I liked better.

"Inklings are predators, Anna. We don't cower in fear or wait for out prey to come to us. If we want it…" I leaned towards her, capturing her wide eyes in mine. "We hunt it."

And right there. That look that mixes bewildered and frightened but also excitement. That look that says she's afraid but also feels safe. That's my favorite.

I felt her heightened breath on my face as I refused to back down. "If you don't want this, now's your time to stop me."

Anna still hadn't moved but her eyes were constantly focusing and unfocusing. I watched, towering above her by a few inches. My hands twitched as the wanted to reach up and push back the strand of hair her hands had abandoned. She still hasn't moved a muscle.

I let out a sigh. "Sorry. I might have gone too far there," I said while backing away. I expected her to push me away or tease me about something but she just kept staring at me with those beautiful, frightened eyes. Anna snapped back to reality.

"Wait I-"

"No, it's ok. I'll try and be more of a normal guy. I don't want to ruin this. Maybe acting more huma-"

"Hunt me," Anna suddenly declared.

"Huh?"

"Hunt me!"

And before I could say anything, she ran off into the woods.


	28. Chapter 28

Merry Christmas and happy holidays everyone!

I'm giving you guys two long chapters because 1) it's the season and 2) the next chapter is going to be super short so I'm hoping this makes up for it.

it was complete chance it lined up like this but I never said that \\(`.`\\)

So stay warm and enjoy the fluff!

:D

* * *

Anna's POV

I don't want Merlis to have to change because I'm a human. He shouldn't need too. His Inkling habits are what makes him him and if he's trying to change that to be with me, then he has the wrong idea about this relationship. Ever since I started to like him, I knew that our relationship was going to be different than a regular one. I think he just needs to be shown that.

The trees flied past me as I ran as fast as my legs could. I couldn't be caught, not until I'm sure Merlis gets what I'm trying to show him.

A fallen log blocked my path, forcing me to jump over it. I was running too fast to change direction.

"Anna!" Merlis yelled.

His hand gripped my arm, almost sending my legs flying out from under me.

"What do you mean by hunt me?"

He let go of my arm as I looked him in the eyes.

"Do you see that tree over there?" I said while pointing over to the first tree my eyes caught. He turned around and I took my chance to run again.

"Anna!" Merlis yelled, a hint of playfulness pooling out.

"Hunt me, Merlis!" I yelled back, letting a laugh tumble from my lips. Not yet. He can't catch me yet.

I didn't get far before I saw Merlis running a few feet beside me.

"You want me to hunt you?"

With a little huff, I nodded my head with a smile.

Merlis smiled back. "If you say so."

He skidded to a stop, disappearing from my field of view. But I didn't stop. I raced forward, running and waiting. He almost got it.

I never knew the feeling of being hunted till I started to get the feeling that a pair of eyes were watching my every move. I'd never see them, those brilliant golden eyes, but my spine would shiver and I'd know he was close. It was nerve racking. He could come in a sudden blur from any direction, any moment.

My legs slowed down, losing all that bundled energy I had at first. I knew the slower I got, the higher chance I would get caught. But I didn't want to pass out and ruin the whole point of him hunting me.

My hand rested against a tree, letting me take in deep breaths. A shiver ran up my spine and I started to run again. _Not yet_ I keep telling myself. Just a little more.

A rustle to my right caused me to sprint to the left. When I looked back, I saw that it was just a squirrel that popped out, holding a nut in his small hands.

"AAAH!"

My body slammed into something in front of me, sending me falling to the ground with a soft thud.

"You ok, there?" Merlis asked.

He crouched down, putting his feet on either side of my legs. His head was held up by his arm, staring down at me.

"You could have caught me at least," I mumbled as I leaned forward unto my arms.

Merlis gave an adorable sideways smile and said, "Well, consider yourself hunted. Now it's time for me to collect my prize."

"Prize?" I slowly said.

"I don't hunt for nothing, Anna. Now stay still."

I shut my eyes, expecting to be kissed or hugged. Maybe a mix between that but when nothing came, I opened them.

And there crouched Merlis, having done nothing but looked at me. His smile though. His smile stretched wider than the sky.

I fell back down and used my hands to cover my face.

"Since when did you become such a tease."

"Since you said you wouldn't stop."

My hands dropped on top of my head and I smiled at him.

"Is this going to be that kind of relationship, Merlis? Cause I think I got you beat."

"I don't know. I think I'm getting good at this," he replied back.

With little strength, I spread my leg apart and knocked Merlis off his feet. I know it was a fifty fifty chance but I was hoping he would have landed backwards. His head landed on my chest instead and I let out a small yip.

"Enjoying the feeling?" I said even though inside my head I was freaking out.

"Sorry!" he exclaimed as he rushed to get up. Red was his new skin color, I swear. He got embarrassed so easily and I got to see it so often, but that only made me want to tease him more.

"Told ya. Got you beat it the teasing category. But don't worry about it, Merlis. I was the one who made you fall in the first place."

"Darn it, Anna," he said, sticking out his hand for me to grab. I took it, heaving myself up. "Fine. You win this round but you should start watching your back."

"Ooo, getting competitive here, are we?" I teased him.

"Just so you know, you brought it on yourself," he said as his eyes glint in childish determination.

"Bring it on."

Anna's POV

My eyes followed the vibrant blue as it swung back and forth with each step Merlis took. It bobbed slightly, taunting me to poke it, maybe squish it, but I held my hands back. Instead I tried drawing my attention elsewhere which was difficult when all the other colors around me were leaf greens and bark browns.

I knew he was teasing me, already going for it only moments after his declaration. I'm not going to fall for it but my eyes always end up back on those blue tentacles. My fingers crossed each other, rubbing thumb over thumb as I remembered how his hair felt when I first touched them.

"You're doing it on purpose."

"What?" Merlis said, not turning around.

I stayed silent.

"Whatever do you mean, Anna?"

"Nothing," I decided to say. Admitting it means I was tempted.

My fingers twitched as I swore that Merlis's steps started to become jumpier. I couldn't let him get away with it.

A small cough at first, just to get him thinking. It worked because his bobbing started to stop. Then two, slightly louder but it wasn't enough. A bang to the chest did the trick.

"Anna? Are you ok?" Merlis asked when he finally turned around, sealing his fate.

"It's ok. It's just that my throat hurts all of the sudden."

Cough. Two hits to the chest.

He instantly appeared inches from my face. His hands were gently resting on my shoulders and he peered into my face.

I placed a small peak on his lips and walked around his still form as he comprehended what happened.

"One point for Anna," I said, holding up one finger. "Let's say first to five points winnnaaaAAaAh!"

My body flung into the air, everything flipping upside down. Merlis had picked me up and thrown me over his shoulders, holding me by the legs.

"Merlis!" I yelled out with laughter layered underneath, shuffling hair out of my eyes. "Merlis! Put me down!"

"After a trick like that, I think you need to be punished," he said, adjusting his grip.

His cool, slick hands had a little bit of trouble holding onto my skin but thankful I hadn't fallen yet so he found a way to make it work. I wanted to flail around my legs but I felt like that severely increased my chances of being dropped.

"One point for Merlis."

I let out a chuckle but he still hadn't put me down.

Minutes passed by and I noticed that my hair was dragging along the ground so I had to drape it around my neck. I had to admit that seeing the forest upside down was a whole new way to enjoy it. Whenever a leaf fell, it wasn't falling anymore but floating upward.

"Hey, Merlis?"

"Yes?"

"Are you going to put me down?"

"Not yet," he said. He did a little hop, adjusting his grip again.

"Well then. Wanna talk about something?"

"Sure. What about?"

I gave little thought to it. I already had a topic I was curious about that he hadn't talked much about.

"How's your parents? Do you have any siblings?"

"My parents are fine. As you heard before, they don't live in Inkopolis with me but we still talk. I'm mean, they sent their 17 year old child off into the bustling city so of course they want to make sure I didn't get mugged or beat up. But it's been a couple months now and I think they finally have enough confidence in me that I won't get in trouble that they only call twice a month. As for siblings, I'm the only child. Guess you won't be getting any Inkling sister or brothers in law."

Merlis looked behind his shoulder, catching me plugging my nose and taking a deep breath.

"Point two for Merlis."

"I hope our children don't have a problem with that," I said back. Merlis blushed.

"Point two for Anna."

"Don't make me drop you."

"You wouldn't dare cause you care too much about me," I said, drawing my attention to the squirrel who jumped across two tree branches.

"You're right. But I could do the next best thing."

Once again, my body got swung forward, up onto Merlis's shoulder. I had to quickly gain my balance so I didn't keep going forward and faceplant into the ground.

"Is that a better view?" he asked.

"Wow."

I felt like a giant. The trees were so close that I could reach up and touch the branches if I wanted to.

"Too bad."

The view lasted only a few seconds before Merlis bopped me off his shoulder and into his arms, princess style.

"Hello," he said.

"Hey," I said back. "Is this the next best thing?"

"Well, I was expecting a different reaction. Anyways, it now my turn. Where's your dad? I haven't seen him around so is he on some kind of trip or something?" Merlis asked me.

"Dad is off on a business trip. Something about a big opportunity for him and whatnot. He won't be back until the end of the month."

"Huh. Well I guess that's good for him," Merlis said, shifting his grip on me.

"Am I starting to get heavy? You can put me down. You've been carrying me for a while now."

"No."

I looked up at him. "No?"

Merlis stopped walking and bent his face down to mine. He rubbed our noses together then continued on walking like nothing happened.

"Merlis…" I murmured.

"Point three."

My hands rose up to his face, turning it to look at me. "Have I ever told you that your eyes make me want to stare at them all day."

Merlis tried looking away but my grip remained firm.

"Whenever the light shines on them, they gleam and sparkle like gold but in the dark, I'm able to spot them from miles away. I see them and I swear I melt. There is no other color I'd rather see every day."

"Darn it, Anna." Merlis slowly let me down, placing his forehead against mine once both my feet were flat against the ground. "Do you really mean that?"

I let my lips curl up. "Point three for Anna."

Merlis gave a defeated smirk, like he was half expecting an answer like that. What I wasn't expecting though was when he took his hands and gently cupped my face.

"Anna, have I ever told you how your smile lights up my world?"

"I already did that. It's not going to work," I said but Merlis kept gazing into my eyes.

"Whenever I see it, I can't help but want to smile along with you. Your smile is so cheerful and bright. I would pay any price to be able to see it every day. The day I get to see your smile every morning is when I can call myself a successful man. I swear to protect that smile of yours with all the strength. Anyone who tries to wipe that smile off your face will have to go through me because your smile is the life of my life. When you stop smiling is the day my life turns black. So promise me you'll keep smiling."

"Merlis…" I whispered. His voice was so sincere, so smooth and caring that would have cried if I didn't stop myself. "I didn't know my smile meant that much to you."

"It means the world to me, Anna. But it also means that I get point four."

Merlis closed his eyes and gave a smile.

I stayed silent. I should have seen that coming. "Ugh, geez. You had me going." I let my head plop onto his chest. "You really have a way for words, Merlis. I could listen to them for hours."

"Well, for the record, I'd never heard my eyes described like you did," Merlis told me. "There are plenty of Inklings with gold eyes so I didn't think they were all that special."

I slowly started to slither my arms around Merlis's waist while he talked but he quickly took notice.

"Anna?"

My fingers locked behind him. With my head against his chest, I heard his heartbeat get louder.

"I'm happy you're here, Merlis. To think that it would have been impossible for us to meet had it not been for a small golden ring you got. We could have lived our lives never knowing either of us existed."

"Don't think like that, Anna. Don't think about what could have happened but instead of what can happen. Because we met, we can hold each other, talk to each other, tease each other." We both smiled. "So let's cherish times like this."

"Such a way with word, Merlis. Such a way with words." We let go and instead of continuing to tease one another, we walked back to my house while idling chatting.

Merlis's POV

I stared at myself. One that's made of cloth and stuffed with cotton but me nonetheless.

"It's adorable!" Anna said, squishing the stuffed me.

It was a deep blue color, a little darker than what my hair was now. The eyes were a pale gold, nothing like mine but the detail put into them almost made up for it. Anna's mom also got the color transition from the tentacles and the round dots accurate but the overall shape seemed a little off. Even with the differences between the stuffed version and the real one, Anna was all consumed with the stuffed squid.

"Look at it, Merlis! Look at it!" Anna pushed 'me' into my face.

I placed my hand on top of the plushie and pushed it down to look at her.

"You really like it that much?"

"Merlis. It's you...but a plushie! I love it."

Anna jumped onto her bed, holding the plushie to the ceiling. "So cute," she mumbled to herself.

"Better than the original?"

She looked over at me with her hazel eyes and gave a surprised smirk.

"Are you jealous?"

"What's to be jealous of?" I quickly replied. "It's a stuffed animal. I'm just wondering if you liked it better than the original."

Anna got up, leaving the squid on the bed along with whatever other stuffed animals where on there. For some reason, that made me happy. "Well, I might have to see the original to be able to compare them."

"Gladly," I said, oblivious to her teasing tone.

As soon as I turned squid, I jumped over to Anna's bed with little hops. I heard Anna give a happy chirp sound as I did that. I propelled myself on the bed, instantly feeling the softness. My head tempted me to stay there but I had to prove a point. Once I laid down next to the stuffed squid, I looked up at Anna. There wasn't any way for me to talk to her while in this form but I could still understand her just fine.

"See? It's just like you. Though...now that I take a closer look…"

Anna's face peered close which caused her eyes to become huge.

"You look ten times as cute."

I head butted her.

Anna stumbled, falling to the floor and landing on her butt with me on top. I didn't give her time to recover before I transformed back. My fingers traveled

up and down the side of her stomach, tickling her.

"Don't call me cute!" I demanded playfully.

She laughed and struggled under me, trying to stop my fingers but any effort she attempted was feeble. She was at my mercy.

"Merlis! Staaaap" She tried to say between laughs. Small tears started to form in her eyes. "Staaaap!"

"Tell me I'm not cute."

I stopped, giving her a much wanted breath of air and time to answer me.

"So?"

"No."

Instead of starting up another tickle attack like she was expecting, seeing as she closed her eyes, I transformed back into a squid. Anna felt the difference in weight and opened her eyes in time to catch me swimming under her bed.

"Merlis?"

I watched as she crawled on her knees towards the bed but I quickly swam to the edge. I popped out from under the bed as soon as Anna stuck her head under. She didn't notice.

"Merlis? Where did you- ah!"

With all the strength I had, I head butted her side which sent her falling down.

"Merlis!"

Back into my human form, I let my laugh fill the room. Soon, Anna's laughter also started up until the both of us were lying on the floor next to each other, hands wrapped in each other's, enjoying the sound of our laughter mixing together.

* * *

P.S. I reposted the first chapter, improving it a bit.


	29. Chapter 29

Merlis's POV

The Octarians invaded.


	30. Chapter 30

My gosh. I love your comments.

3

Literally made my week.

* * *

Anna's POV

Merlis's grip on my hand was like a handcuff. We were running through the woods like prison escapes so I guess I understood. What I didn't understand was why. My body was rigged out from my warm, comfy bed in the middle of the night by Merlis and we bolted out of the house. No explanation. No warning. No "Hey, let's go on a midnight run!" But I guess I really didn't need an explanation when colored ink flew and ink bombs exploded all around us.

I tried taking a look behind me but the only glimpses I got were of figures with large tentacle hair and red goggles that glowed. The night wasn't helping in any of this.

My body got tugged downward into a ditch which caused me to squeak out. Thankfully, Merlis had put his hand over my mouth to muffle it. My thin pajamas did nothing to protect me from the cold ground underneath me but Merlis's body, which was half draped over me, gave some kind of warmth.

"Merlis...what's going on?" I whispered.

His hand pushed down my head suddenly. Rustling in the bushes a few feet away caught my attention. My mind exploded in warnings but one of them stuck out. Merlis glowed slightly in the dark. I tried struggling, tried getting myself over Merlis but his grip was too tight. A few seconds later, the figures that were chasing us appeared from the bushes. I held my breath and prayed. _Please don't notice us!_

By some kind of miracle, they continued on. We waited another nerve racking minute because Merlis didn't want to chance anything.

His hand slowly slid off my head. I released the giant gulp of air I was holding.

"It's the Octarians. They've somehow found a way into the human world," he said, poking his heading out to check our surroundings.

"What! Like Octarians, Octarians?"

"Ssh. Yes. I saw them through the window when I couldn't fall asleep."

"How many?"

"I only saw three but who knows how many are hiding." Merlis slid back down and looked me in the eyes. "This is bad, Anna. They found a way to get here without the ring. There's nothing stopping them from invading this whole world if they wanted to."

"If they're here, that means they must know about the ring."

"Yes and that means either an Inkling told an Octoling about it or we have a spy mingling with the Inklings."

"But I thought you guys weren't at war with each other anymore? Sending spies sounds like a war move."

"We aren't. The Octarians have been...divided for a while. There's one side who wants to get along and another who doesn't."

"What if they're the Octarians that Papil's grandmother faught?"

"It's most likely the same organization. I would think they would keep the ring a close guarded secret so not just anybody could use their power."

"What are w…" My words died out. A deep red glow surrounded us as Octolings appeared above us. We blacked out.

Merlis's POV

"Anna. Anna, wake up!"

Anna mumbled, stretched her arms wide, and slowly got up off the floor. Her hair was a slight mess but she paid no attention to that.

"Merlis? Where are we?" she asked, popping her back.

"I don't know. In the back of some kind of vehicle. Going somewhere. Is your head ok?"

"Just a killer headache. Back hurts," she complained.

"Ya. Had the same thing. I woke a few minutes before you and did a quick check. There's nothing in here with us. The road has been relatively bumpy. Definitely not city roads," I explained to her. With my soft glow guiding her, Anna crawled to me. She wrapped her hand in mine and leaned on me. I stayed quiet for a bit, enjoying the feeling of her hand in mine. It gave me hope.

"You think we're still in my time period?"

"No. They wouldn't be that reckless."

"So, they took the ring?"

"Yup."

"Any idea where we're going?"

"Nowhere near any Inkling civilization. I'm sure about that. We'll be fine. They have the ring and hadn't killed us so they probably only want the information we know about it."

Anna's eyes widen.

"How can we understand each other? We don't have the ring."

My mouth hung open slightly. "It has to be near by then. Probably the driver has it or something."

Time passed. The vehicle hadn't stopped but the road eventually evened out. We decided to get more sleep. There might have been a reason we shouldn't have but I couldn't find it. It was a little weird that we hadn't got tied up or restricted in any way. The Octolings were probably confident enough in containing us that they didn't see the need.

Hours passed when the car finally rolled to a stop. Anna and I stared at each other, stopping everything we were doing. I brought Anna behind me to protect her as the door opened.

"Come on out," demanded an Octoling. She was holding a E-liter 4K, ready for any kind of escape attempted by us.

We shuffled off but I always had Anna behind me. I did a quick scan in front of us. The sunlight was dying out behind the forest. There were other Octolings guarding the area, all loaded with a weapon.

"Now turn around. We're going this way."

Once I did, my eyes landed on an old worn out building. Vines grew down the walls and the trees covered it from above. Everything about it screamed abandoned.

"You," demanded the E-liter 4K Octoling, which I now think is running this thing, to a by standing Octoling. "Open the door."

Once the wooden door opened, a huge metal one stood behind it. There was a combination the Octoling put in and the door let out a small hiss, popping open.

The smell of metal blew right into my face. Anna let out a snort.

The leading Octoling pushed through us and demanded, "Follow."

We did so obediently. A few Octoling followed behind us. The metal door shut with a woosh of air behind us. The hanging lights above were old, probably having layers of dust covering them. It made me wonder how the bulb hadn't died out.

While we were led down a steep staircase, I whispered to Anna, "I think she has the ring." My head swung towards the Octoling in front of us.

She nodded her head in agreement.

"Let's wait and see where they take us," Anna whispered back.


	31. Chapter 31

Merlis's POV

We kept our mouths shut the rest of the way down, not wanting to give away anything just yet. The Octoling led us through many hallways and eventually to an office room with a wooden desk and a few chairs. It was old looking, not bothering to keep up to date with any kind of trend. The wooden furniture was a drastic contrast to the metal walls we just been through. Even though it was old, it felt homey.

"Here, take this to Davle. Have him check it," said the leading Octoling.

Instinct told me to lunge out and grab it but we needed to play it safe if we wanted to survive. I looked at Anna and knew what being away from the ring meant for her. She had no other way of understanding anything.

No one said anything and after someone shut the door behind us, it was only the E-liter Octoling and us.

"I'm guessing you're the leader here?" I asked, shifting ever so closer to Anna.

The Octoling set her charger against the wall. "Take a seat. I'm sure that this is going to be a long conversation which I'm going to need to make short. And sorry if we seemed a bit...threatening. A lot has been put into this and we don't want anything to mess it up."

Anna and I exchanged looks. She nudged her shoulders towards the chair. I squinted my eyes.

"Would you feel safer if I gave you the E-liter to have? Feel free to grab it. I just want to help you. Believe me."

"Then why did you sneak up on us in the middle of the night and attack us?"

"Well, it was hard tracking you down Merlis but once we pinpointed the basic area, some human named Jack pointed us straight to you. Quite a rude character if I do say. Anyways, you're the ones who ran and there was no way to stop you guys without knocking you out. We had to get back quickly. That was the last resort. Sorry. Trying to explain it all out then and there would take too long. Safety and time limits."

"Why put us in the back of the car? The armed Octoling everywhere?" I questioned.

The Octoling let out a little sigh.

"Yes. I'm sorry about that, too. We had no idea what you guys were capable of so no one wanted you riding up front with them. The back of the truck was the only spot left. Armed guards are for your safety. There are other Octolings out there that are dead set on stopping us and taking the ring technology for themselves. I don't know how they found out about it but they made their intentions clear. All of us in this building just want to put the ring behind us."

Anna was first to sit down and I eventually joined her, feeling as though the Octoling was speaking the truth. Either that or this is a very convincing act.

"Every Octoling that works here had someone related to them working on the ring long ago. My grandfather was actually the main researcher for the ring. The ring was never meant to be used for evil purposes. My grandfather was a scientist that had a fascination with the human race. But before he could finish the ring, it got stolen by an Inkling. They invaded this building and destroyed most of the equipment."

Anna's eyes were wide, accepting all that was being said by her. But somewhere along the way, she lost her spark. Her face became confused and I could tell that was the moment when she no longer understood what we were saying.

 _So, the ring did have a range to it._

"Grandfather tried getting it back, scared what it would do because it wasn't finished. Never could though. He died trying to recreate something similar to the ring. His work died along with him when no one could understand the mechanics or his train of thought with it. We couldn't leave it at that though. For many years, we've tried continuing the research of the ring, only being able to create an unstable portal. That's how we got to the human world. I'm afraid though that was our last trip. The portal is too unstable to keep using. Not to mention that we have ran out of the material to keep the portal together. But that's beside the point. We needed the ring back because we've found out it's a literal ticking time bomb."

"What?!" I exclaimed, jumping out of the seat. Anna flinched. Noticing, I sat back down and grabbed her hand to reassure her but also myself.

"If you don't mind me asking young lady but can you understand what we're saying?" the Octoling asked Anna but like I expected, she replied in some kind of garbled language. The Octoling let out a curse.

"It's worse than I thought," she worriedly said.

I explained, "It's the ring. When she's away from it, she no longer can understand us. The ring has some kind of range."

"No." The Octoling stood up from the chair roughly. A loud squeak echoed in the small room. "That's not how the ring works. Whoever gains possession of the ring also gains the ability of translating any language. That's also interchangeable but there's no range to it. It'll work as long as the ring is existing at the same time."

The Octoling swung the door open, ushering us to quickly follow. Anna started to look worried, tugging on my sleeve. I automatically started to calm her but remembered that she couldn't understand. Squeezing her hand tighter, I lead us out the door.

We followed the Octoling though the weaving hallways. Anna gripped my arm along the way as the Octoling continued to explain. "Her not being able to understand means that the ring is starting to deteriorate. If we're basing this off of assumptions, when the range of the ring becomes nonexistent, the ring will destroy itself. A ticking time bomb. Has anything else been weird about the ring?"

All three of us swerved around a corner, taking a staircase lower down.

"Others touched the ring besides Anna and I and they didn't time travel."

"That's normal. Anything else?"

"No."

"Good. That might give us more time."

"More time for what?" Anna asked.

"Oh no. That's closer than I thought," the Octoling said.

"The ring is a ticking time bomb, Anna. These Octolings created a portal to get to us which they can't use anymore and we have to find a way to stop the ring from exploding."

"O-ok," she wearily said. "Cool. Wait, not cool. Why are we running?"

We turned a corner and came face to face with two Octolings decked out in armor and splattershots in hand.

"We've been infiltrated. They're following us. Take care of them," she commanded to the guarding Octolings.

They nodded their heads and went out into the hallway while the leading Octoling punched in a code to the double metals doors we stopped in front of.

"In! In! In!"

I ushered Anna inside the room and before I could take a step, I heard an inkbomb explode which rattled under my feet. Two screams followed.

"IN!" the Octoling yelled, shoving me inside. She pulled the door shut seconds before Octolings dressed in complete black appeared. I could barely catch the blurry image of a bomb being thrown at the door before it shut completely.

"Ranth? What's going on?" an Octoling cautiously said from behind us.

Ranth, who whispered something under her breath, turned around and said, "Davle, we've been infiltrated. I don't know how but we need to protect the ring. This door isn't going to hold them for long if they are really determined. They finally made their move."

"That's going to be hard to do when we can't get near the ring anymore," Davle informed us, leading us to where they kept the ring.

The ring sat on a mechanical pedestal, letting out a white glow.

"It didn't usually do that…" Anna said. Other Octoling that were in the room stopped for a second when they heard her talk. They stared, some wide eyed and others, ones that looked older, with amazement.

"What's wrong with it?" Ranth asked.

"We can't get near it. There's about a three foot radius around the ring stopping us. Anybody who tries gets pushed back. Every second that passes, the glow gets brighter. Ranth, I think it's about to explode. We need to evacuate everybody, get as far away from here as possible. Who knows what kind of explosion this ring could cause. It could probably wipe out a whole city. It's a lost cause, Ranth. We need to run!"

A heat wave almost blew me down to the ground as the metal doors we've just came from slowly fell, a giant 'woosh' sound being created. The ground shuck from the impact. Ink instantly started to fly as everyone in the room scattered.

I grabbed a hold of Anna and shoved the both of us behind some machinery right before an ink blast shot past us. The invading Octoling filtered in and spread out, capturing everyone they could. Screams filled the air.

"Who's the leader around here?" an Octoling demanded over the commotion, standing in the middle of the room. She wore a tight black suit which seemed like armor and some kind of charger that I've never seen. It looked more...metallic.

Ranth, who stood up from her crouching position, proudly said, "That'll be me. Now you better-"

A piercing scream rang in my ears as the Octoling who we've only just met got shot straight in the head, toppling down like a single domino blown over by the wind.


	32. Final Chapter Anna

Happy Valentine's Day!

So to celebrate my single pringle self, and for this love filled holiday, I'm posting the last chapters!

Yay!

:D but D:

There will be two chapters from both characters' perspective just to make it more interesting.

Enjoy!

* * *

Anna's Version

I screamed.

Others did too but I _screamed._

She died, right in front of my eyes. Shot straight through the head. It wasn't a bad movie or some sick and twisted dream but something that just happened. Ranth would never again move, talk, or take another breath of air.

 _She's dead._

 _Dead._

Clear blood started to pool around her head. Her eyes were still open and pointed upward in a hollow gaze.

 _Murdered._

A hand, Merlis's hand, slammed over my eyes as he dragged my body into his. He radiated warmth, unlike how Ranth's was bleeding out from her.

"Sssshhhhhhhhh," he softly whispered in my ear. "Sssssssshhhh."

I wanted to cry. I wanted to yell. I wanted to go home to where there wasn't a dead body lying in front of me, back to those days where Merlis and I teased each other playfully all day. That was only yesterday, right? This can't be happening. People can't just die like that, in a blink of an eye...

"Now where's this human hiding? I know I saw it. I want to get a close look at it," the murderer said.

Merlis's grip tightened and a quick second later, he let out a curse word under his breath.

"Ah, there it is. And it's a girl. What a stroke of luck."

"Just take the ring and get out! Leave Anna out of this," Merlis spat with anger.

The murderer chuckled. "Oh, we're going to get the ring. She's just the appetizer before the feast. In fact, she should feel honored by being the first human in my conquest of the human race."

I felt a hand grab ahold of my leg but Merlis tore me away. He stood up, standing millimeters from the murderer.

"Over my dead body."

A sick laugh filled the space around us. The murderer uttered, "That can easily be arranged." She pulled out the charger, one that looked similar to a rifle, and pointed it straight at Merlis's chest.

"NO! I'LL GO! I'll go! Just don't kill him!" I historically yelled out, a small shiver consuming my body.

"Anna!" Merlis yelled.

Before he could say anything else, the murderer shoved him to the ground and dug her nails into my arm. I had to bite my lip down to suppress the scream I needed to let out. She'd tug and I'd feel the nails pierce deeper.

I needed to escape.

Using my free arm, I tried digging my own nails into her arm, hopefully causing her grip to slack. It didn't.

A stinging pain exploded on my check as the murderer slapped me across the face.

"Listen here, human. For decades, I've been hiding in the dark corners of Inkopolis, gathering information on anything about the gold ring that some idiotic Inkling took from this very research building. I was here during that time, working away my years and trying to find a way to get the ring for myself. Just think, a whole race under my control. I couldn't pass that up. After its disappearance, I built up a group whose whole purpose was to find it and start an invasion. And to think I'd see that same white light that happened so long ago in the middle of town square. Some petty attacks from you isn't going to stop this operation I've been building up for longer than you've been alive! Now act like the slave you now are!"

"Commander!" an Octoling said as she ran up to the murderer. "It's the ring. We can't get near it."

" _What?_ " the murderer slowly said, anger clear in her voice.

"It's some kind of protective field."

"AH!" I yelled out, feeling the nails finally penetrate through my skin. Blood started to form little pea sized puddles that dripped down my arm.

" _ **What?**_ "

"W-we've tried but-" the Octoling stuttered but the murderer cut her off by taking her charger and shooting the Octoling's ear with pinpoint accuracy.

Clear blood dripped down, landing on the floor as the Octoling crippled down in agonizing pain.

"Stop it!" I yelled but it was easily ignored.

"What did you pathetic Octolings do to it!?" the murderer yelled around the room to all the scared and frightened Octolings. No one answered.

With tears ready to spill out of my eyes, I looked over at the ring. There were Octolings dressed in black trying to get to it but none could like an invisible force field was stopping them. What I noticed though was the white glow had become almost unbearable to look at.

"Bronfsw uonbx zwq wtipl!" The murder yelled out again.

 _Oh no._

"Nihn!"

I swerved my head to the sound of Merlis's voice.

"Nihn!"

"Merlis!"

I couldn't physically understand him but I knew he was yelling out my name.

"Hwod sjsk shdjwh eidy."

"Khej fko!" The murderer yelled. My body got flung towards the ring with unnatural strength. I slid across the floor, feeling a burning sensation on my skin. Small streaks of red blood were left behind on the tile.

"Anna!"

"I will get this ring if it's the last thing I do! Some stupid forcefield isn't going to stop me!" the murderer yelled out only to get tackled by Merlis. The gun she held on to slid across the floor as the both of them struggled.

A few of the invading Octoling rushed up to help but Davle blocked their way, throwing some beads at them. On impact, those beads exploded and sent the Octolings flying.

"Everyone! Run! Get far away! This place is going to explode!" Davle yelled out.

There was an eerie silence after those words were spoken. No one moved.

"NOW!"

Octolings sprinted into a frenzy. A few took it upon themselves to hold off the rest of the invasive Octolings to help the rest escape. I saw them run, out the doorless doorway and disappear from the room. Weapons were going off, ink flying past my vision. The room filled with sound once again. Yells. Screams. Struggles.

I dragged my aching body off the ground. Clear blood caught my sights as the murderer and Merlis rolled along the floor in front of me. I couldn't tell if it was Merlis's or not.

"Merlis…"

He ended up on top, sending punches raining down on the murderer's face. There were nail marks along his skin, almost like cat scratches.

The murderer shoved him off with a sudden strength. When she stood up, there were small tears in her armor.

"You are one annoying pest. Now all of my hostages escaped thanks to the _heroic_ Octoling so I think you need to pay for that."

A shot echoed in my head as I saw a spray of clear blood explode into the air. The murderer yelled out a curdling scream, clutching her arm.

Davle stood with her rifle like gun shakily held in his hands.

"Run, Merlis! Take your human and run! I'll hold her off!"

A small rattling sound started behind me. Taking a look, the ring started to vibrate on the pedestal.

It was going to explode.

A hand grabbed my arm and I almost lashed out before I noticed it was Merlis. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the murderer turn towards us.

"Watch out!"

Another gun shot rang out but it missed us.

"Asjdo aisia widol!"

Not again.

I got tugged towards the exit as Davle guarded our backs. Merlis kept running, towing me along but I had to look behind me. The murderer lashed out, leaving a cut on Davle's arm because he hadn't dodged quick enough. He wobbled slightly, staring downward. Ranth's body still laid on the floor as I caught him staring at it.

We bursted outside into the cold night, catching sight of the rest of the Octolings escaping into the forest. The sky has become dark and we only had the soft glows everyone emitted to guide us. Our feet ran forward, through the bushes and over the fallen trees.

"Widu sofol socuv?" Merlis asked me as he slowly stopped somewhere in the middle of the forest. He turned to face me and I stared at those golden eyes that shined in the dark. They were alive, so bright in the night.

"I can't understand you, Merlis," I told him.

He closed his eyes, lowering his head in understanding. I felt his arms slink around me, pulling me close. Again, he felt warm in the night and I loved that. My head rested against his shoulder, taking in his scent. Small tears started to roll down my cheeks.

"Merlis," I quietly cried out.

He rubbed his hands up and down my back just like I once did to him. He comforted me, letting me cry those silent tears. Everything had happened so quickly.

 _What was going to happen now that we didn't have the ring?_

"Icus socbo iao," Merlis whispered in my ear.

A huge explosion sounded behind us. I turned around, catching the blazing red filter through the leaves. In the distance, a white light started to rush towards us.

It was like a raging animal was stuck in my stomach. Sounds started to ring in my ears and as the white light came closer, my vision started to waver. I turned back to Merlis and saw him looking confusingly at me. He gazed back towards the light and then back to me. He tilted his head in wonder at my frantic eyes.

The white light was barreling towards me. I could feel it. Something in my head just knew what that light meant.

"Merlis!"

I threw myself at him, capturing, chaining his lips to mine. It was a hungry kiss and one of need. I had to burn his taste into my memory so I would never forget. After the second of surprise, his hands found their place in my hair. Lightning seemed to course through his fingertips as he ran them down. They landed on my neck, letting his slick skin touch mine. Using my own hands, I reached up and touched his pointed ears. He shivered at my touch which, besides the circumstances, caused me to perk my lips slightly. I started to run out of breath but this moment needed to last longer.

"Nihn?" Merlis whispered when he pushed away slightly, not having enough air to even speak properly.

Tears rolled down my cheeks freely like a gentle rain. Life was too cruel. This can't be how we part.

"Merlis...goodbye."

I felt the white light rush through my body. It started at my toes and fingertips like a crackling flame. The weight of Merlis's hands in my hair became feathery light. His golden eyes never left me, but it was hard to see through the tears. Even his vibrant blue hair paled to nothing. The blurry image of him reaching out, screaming something into the air, faded.

Everything disappeared like a dandelion blown away by the wind and my last moments in the Inkling world, my last moments with Merlis, ended in a white void.

…

I cried out till I had no more tears to shed. His name spilled from my lips countless times until I couldn't even recognize what I was saying.

The white light had taken me back to my house but I didn't bother to walk inside. I ran into the forest, back to that spot I first met Merlis. That was where I spilled my tears. It was in the sun ray filled spot against the tree where the birds chirped and squirrels jumped branch to branch, where our eyes meet each other and our fates intertwined in this cruel life.

It was only later, cuddled in my bed with a plushie squid for comfort, did I find that you can never run out of tears. In the pages of my sketchbook, I had found Merlis's handwritten message right above the drawing of us staring up at the moon.

 _I'm sure that your smile shines brighter than any moon. Never stop smiling._

 _~Merlis_


	33. Final Chapter Merlis

Merlis's Version

Anna screamed and I never wanted to hear her scream like that again.

I used my hand to cover her eyes from the sight in front of us, bringing her against me.

"Sssshhhhhhhhh," I softly whispered in her ear. "Sssssssshhhh."

I couldn't lie. I felt sick but Anna needed me more than I needed myself right now.

"Now where's this human hiding? I'd like to get a close look at it," the Octoling said.

My grip tightened around Anna and a quick second later, I let out a curse word under my breath.

"Ah, there it is. And it's a girl. What a stroke of luck."

"Just take the ring and get out! Leave her out of this," I spat with anger.

The Octoling chuckled. "Oh, we're going to get the ring. She's just the appetizer before the feast. In fact, she should feel honored by being the first human in my conquest of the human race."

She grabbed a hold of Anna's leg but I tore her away. With Anna behind me, I stood up and was millimeters from the Octoling's face.

"Over my dead body."

A sick laugh filled the space around us. The Octoling uttered, "That can easily be arranged." She pulled out the charger, the strangely metallic one, and pointed it straight at my chest.

"NO! I'LL GO! I'll go! Just don't kill him!" Anna fired out.

"Anna!" I yelled. Before I could say anything else, the Octoling shoved me to the ground. My head hit the floor, sending out a wave of pain. Noises filtered into my ears but everything I couldn't focus on them. It took a burning need to protect that got me up on my feet. My ears let out a small pop, letting clear sound pour in.

"Captain!" I heard an Octoling say. "It's the ring. We can't get near it."

" _What?_ "

"It's some kind of protective field."

"AH!" Anna yelled out which sent lightning running through my blood.

" _ **What?**_ "

"W-we've tried but-" the Octoling stuttered but suddenly a gunshot echoed in the room. I tried to look up but my head still felt like an earthquake.

"Stop it!" Anna yelled.

Strength seemed to pour into me.

"What did you pathetic Octolings do to it!?" the Octoling screamed out. No one answered. "Answer me!"

"Anna!"

With new found power, I stood up off the floor. I saw Anna, who was lying on the ground with red blood on her arm, swerve her head at me.

"Anna!"

"Tijnv!"

On no.

I couldn't understand her and the ring was only a couple feet away from us.

"Let her go!" I yelled at the Octoling.

"Shut up!" The murderer yelled in newfound anger. Anna got flung towards the ring with unnatural strength. She slid across the floor as small streaks of blood were left behind.

"Anna!"

"I will get this ring if it's the last thing I do! Some stupid forcefield isn't going to stop me!" the murderer said but I didn't let her say anything more. I charged at her, tackling her to the ground. The charger she had slid across the floor as we both struggled against each others punches.

Both of us knew whoever got on top would win the fight so we kept pushing each other down. Her nails were sharp. Stinging sensations traveled across my arm but I ignored them. There were small explosions in front of us but I ignored them too. My anger helped my mind concentrate on the Octoling in front of me.

"Everyone! Run! Get far away! This place is going to explode!" I recognized as Davle yelling out.

"NOW!"

Octolings moved in a frenzy all around us. I took her distraction of them to leave a giant rip in her black armor. Weapons were going off, ink flying past my vision. The room filled with sound. Yells. Screams. Struggles.

Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw Anna slowly getting up off the floor.

I could tell the Octoling was getting tired because I started getting more hits on her than she did on me. The battle finally swayed to my favor as I got to stay on top of her for more than a second. I let a rain of punches fall on her face.

I felt nails dig into my side as she shoved me off with sudden strength.

My body rolled off her, wincing when I landed on the side she pricked with her nails.

Picking herself off the ground slowly, the Octoling said, "You are one annoying pest. Now all of my hostages escaped thanks to the _heroic_ Octoling so I think you need to pay for that."

A shot echoed in the empty room as I saw a spray of clear blood explode from the Octoling's arm. She yelled out a curdling scream, clutching it.

Davle stood with her metallic charger shakily held in his hands.

"Run, Merlis! Take your human and run! I'll hold her off!"

A small rattling sound caught my ears as I looked up at the ring.

It's about to explode.

I lunged myself off the ground and ran to Anna, grabbing a hold of her arm. She whipped around and looked ready to punch me in the face.

"Watch out!"

Another gun shot rang out.

"I'm going to kill you!" the Octoling yelled out.

I tugged Anna towards the exit as Davle guarded our backs. I kept running, through the halls and out the wooden door to be greeted with a blast of cold air.

I knew the sacrifice Davle was about to make to allow Anna and I a safe runaway. At the last moment, I saw that there were tears in his eyes. It was like his whole world had shattered. That's when it clicked.

Octolings ran into the forest so we followed. The sky had become dark and we only had the soft glows everyone emitted to guide us. Our feet ran forward, through the bushes and over the fallen trees.

"Are you ok?" I asked Anna after I stopped somewhere in the middle of the forest. I turned to face her and saw her hazel eyes in the dark, rich with life.

"Os aocuv widuv, Tijnv," Anna said.

I closed my eyes. Right.

I let my arms slick around her, feeling her breath against my chest. Either way, she was alive and next to me. That's all I needed. Her head gently landed on my shoulder.

"Tijnv," she quietly whimpered as tears wet my shoulders.

 _Cry it out._

I rubbed my hands up and down her back just like she once did to me. I said nothing, knowing she needed a moment to get it out.

"I'll always be here for you," I whispered in her ear.

A huge explosion sounded behind us. I looked up, catching the blazing red filter through the leaves. A wave of wind blew straight at us, ruffling our hair.

That was it. The ring was destroyed.

Anna tugged my sleeve. When I brought my attention to her, her eyes were slightly puffy but filled with urgency. I looked at her, confused. She looked back towards the explosion and I did too. Red still tinted the sky. I tilted my head in wonder at her frantic eyes. She must have realized what happened to Dave.

"Tijnv!"

Anna threw herself at me and captured my lips. It was a hungry kiss, one of want and need. I was taken back by it, never realizing she was capable of this kind of kiss. My hands drew to her silky hair like a magnet, running them through. Her taste seeped into my mouth. I didn't care anymore and just lost myself in her. Her body fit perfectly against me that I swore it was made for me. Her tongue, which found its way into my mouth, gently ran along my fangs. Smooth finger reached for my ears.

My breath seemed to leave my body like a balloon being popped. I broke off, taking a much needed breath of air.

"Anna?"

Tears decorated her eyes.

"Tijnv...pakah."

A white light emitted from Anna. My hands no longer felt her silky hair but instead felt like they were floating on air.

 _No._

It started with her hands. Then her legs. White light started to eat away around her like flame on paper.

 _No!_

I reached out, trying to grab onto the fading image of Anna but there wasn't anything I could do as she disappeared from my life in a flash of white.

…

Any of the remaining invading Octolings that survived the blast were placed into Inkopolis's prison to be interrogated. The Octolings that were working on the ring had disbanded. With the ring destroyed and their leader dead, there wasn't anything left they could do. Technically, their mission was done.

I for one was left with only one thing I could do; cry. But not until I had made it back to Inkopolis. Through the dark, empty streets and to my apartment where I cried through the night. Anna was my life. I don't know when but she had become such an irreplaceable person to me. Now that she was gone, I was left with a wide open hole in my chest. I missed her teasing, her laughter, her eyes, her smile, her everything.

A knock on the door brought my tear stained face toward it but I made no move to get it.

"Merlis?" Spyke's muffled voice said.

The door creaked open as I cursed at myself for forgetting to lock it.

"I've brought Anna's clothes. She never came back to get them. Thought I'd give them… Merlis? Are you ok?"

Spyke cautiously walked up to me, placing the clothes on my desk.

"No, Spyke. And I never will again. Anna...she's gone."

Silence ensued for moments on end. Dangerous thoughts swam in that silence. They were sharks that bit at me.

"Don't do it, Merlis. Anna would want you to live."

"BUT SHE'S NOT HERE ANYMORE! SHE'LL NEVER BE!" I snapped out in rage.

A crisp slap sent pain reeling through my cheek.

"I don't know what happened but this isn't you, Merlis. Wherever Anna is, I'm sure she's still alive. I only got to met her for a few minutes but in the time, I could tell she was a kind girl. Think of what she would do if you hurt yourself. She'd be devastated. If Anna means so much to you that you can't live without her, then don't give up."

My eyes traveled to the clothes. Werely, I got up and walked towards them. Lying on top of the folded jeans and t-shirt were two black hair ties. Pulling the hair tie that was holding up my hair out, I grabbed the black ones and used them to pull my hair up.

"Fine," I declared, puffy, red eyes sharpening. "I'm going to find a way to see her again. Even if it takes me my whole life."

* * *

Thank you for sticking with me through my story and encouraging me. Though many of you might not like the ending, I hope you like the story overall.

Good bye and stay fresh!

:3


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